


Old Meets New

by RockSunner



Category: Scooby Doo - All Media Types
Genre: Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Crossover, Crossover Pairings, Multi, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-07
Updated: 2017-06-30
Packaged: 2018-02-28 12:29:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 32
Words: 63,735
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2732582
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RockSunner/pseuds/RockSunner
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is a Scooby-Doo cross-over in which the old Mystery Inc. (SDWAY through WNSD) comes to Crystal Cove. All characters belong to Warner Brothers, not me.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Green Mist

The Mystery Machine hurtled down the road in the dusk.

"Fred, are you sure we're going the right way? I think we, like, got lost in that spooky green fog," Shaggy said.

"Rooky reen rog," said Scooby-Doo with a shudder.

"Don't worry," Fred said, "There's a sign up ahead."

"Crystal Cove. The most hauntedest place on earth," Velma read. "They need to work on their grammar."

"Most h-hauntedest place on earth? I just knew it!" Shaggy said. "Why can't we ever get lost near a nice quiet resort?"

"It seems like we always end up where we're needed," Daphne said. "Let's find out what their haunt problem is, and solve it for them."

"Here we go again," said Shaggy.

"Look over there, it's the Crystal Cove Spook Museum," said Velma. "That would be the perfect place to start asking questions."

"I hope they have a snack bar," said Shaggy. "I'm starved."

"Re roo," said Scooby.

They entered the museum and were met by the proprietress, a large woman with a streak of white in her auburn hair.

"Welcome, visit... oh my! You gave me a start. You look so much like them you almost had me fooled for a second. You must be huge fans of Mystery Incorporated. What authentic costumes!"

"I don't know what you mean," said Fred. "These aren't costumes."

"Well, yours could use a few touches, young man. The real Fred Jones always wears a red ascot and he doesn't have a blue stripe on his shirt."

"What do you think had happened?" Daphne whispered to Velma. "Have we gone back in time?"

"Let's wait and listen, and try to find out more," Velma said.

"Where are you folks from?" the museum lady asked.

"Coolsville, Ohio, but we travel a lot," said Fred.

"And you've come all the way here to see our famous little town. How nice."

"Like, we're sort of lost here," said Shaggy. "We could use some directions. And food."

"You must meet my daughter Velma," said the lady. "She's working here today. She can give you the tour, and you can have a snack in our coffee bar afterward. Oh Velma, come out and meet some out-of-town fans!"

A slimmer Velma appeared from the back of the museum. "Fred... you came back? Shaggy, how did you get away? Jinkies, there's another me! You...you're disguised as us. Who are you and what do you want?"

"Like I said dear, they're big fans who came to visit our town, dressing the part. I'll leave you to get acquainted and take the tour."

After she left the room, Scooby looked back and forth between the two nearly-identical twins. "Rhelma and Rhelma?"

"You may have fooled my mom, but I don't believe the tourist bit for a second. Your faces are too close to be real – they must be masks. This is some kind of scheme," said the Crystal Cove Velma.

"Not masks," said Fred. "Try to unmask us and you'll see."

"I think I've almost figured it out," said the Coolsville Velma. "I thought of an experiment to try. Velma, would you switch glasses with me for a second?"

"You think you can get me blind and then kidnap me, or something? My mom's right here, in calling distance. I'll call your bluff," said the other Velma.

She handed over her glasses and tried on the ones her twin gave her. "I can see perfectly... it can't be.. Did you raid my optometrist's records and get a duplicate pair made? But then how could you see, wearing them?"

They traded glasses back, and the Coolsville Velma said, "We arrived here through a strange green fog. My theory is that this is a parallel world, and we're the counterparts of you and your friends."

The Crystal Cove Velma said, "All right, suppose that were the case, which I don't completely buy. What are you doing here?"

"Like, we were driving along and just got lost here," Shaggy said.

Velma turned away from Shaggy, tears in her eyes, "You look and sound so much like him, it hurts."

"Like, I'm sorry," said Shaggy. "Something's happened to the Shaggy you know?"

"He was sent away to military school by his parents. His Scooby-Doo was sent to a farm," Velma said.

"Rarm?" Scooby asked. "Ro no."

"Fred has left town, and Daphne isn't speaking to me. Our gang is dead. Now all of you show up, looking like we did when we were happy. It's too much."

"Maybe we can help," said Daphne. "We must be here for a reason."

"You solve mysteries?" Velma asked.

"Everywhere we go, all over the world. Cases just fall into our laps," Daphne said.

"Maybe you can help, then. I don't know. Come back into the wax museum and we can talk about it."

As the gang entered the wax museum, they gave a start and looked around wildly.

"Like, it's a shrine to all our early cases," said Shaggy.

"Our early cases," the local Velma said. "But my folks don't use them for that. They pretend they were real spooks to impress the tourists. Our town doesn't like solving us solving mysteries because they say it's bad for business."

The other Velma was looking at the wax figures. "Wow, this takes me back. Henry Bascombe, the Space Kook. Creeps and Crawls, the Phantom Shadows. Mr. Carswell, the Creeper..."

"Carlswell, not Carswell," said the local Velma.

"I guess that's just one of the things that's different," said the out-of-town Velma.

"You've solved cases like ours, and how many more?" asked the local Velma.

"Hundreds," said Fred.

"You look like us, but you must be past teen-age by now. How old..."

"Don't ask that question," said Daphne. "We just age well."

"So you're not in high school like we are."

"Like, we graduated a long time ago," said Shaggy.

"Any relationships between you? Like, you and you..." She looked at Fred and Daphne.

"Just good friends," said Fred. "Those rumors about Daphne and I going off together..."

"As if we would, in spooky places where we might get caught by crooks in monster disguises, or by our friends. Not to mention the dust that would get all over my clothes," said Daphne.

Velma looked a little curious at this too-specific denial, but she went on. "Or you and you?" This time she looked at her counterpart and Shaggy.

"Ruh-uh," said Scooby.

"Like, that would never happen," said Shaggy.

"He only has eyes for food, not me," said the out-of-town Velma with a trace of bitterness.

The local Velma decided to leave that hot topic alone. "You said you travel all over the world. How can you afford that? Do you have jobs?"

"Like, sometimes we have to take short-term jobs if we run out of money toward the end of the month," said Shaggy. "But usually we're loaded."

"My family is rich, and we're on a monthly stipend from them and from government grants," said Daphne. "They think we benefit the world, just going around doing what we do."

The local Velma sighed. "What a life you have. Rich, famous, honored..."

"Rere's ronsters," said Scooby. "Ranger reverywhere re ro."

"You're harder to understand than our Scooby," said the local Velma. "He doesn't use so many r's."

"Rorry," said Scooby.

"It's all right," said the local Velma.

"Now, how can we help you?" Fred asked.

"It's hard to know where to start, but maybe you can help, Fred. What do you know about your real parents? Our Fred has gone looking for his."

"I grew up with them. Skip and Peggy Jones," said Fred. "They're fine folks."

"Our Fred grew up with the former Mayor, who turned out to be a psycho freak who kidnapped him as a baby. His real parents are Brad and Judy Chiles, but they probably changed their names. I'd be surprised if they picked Jones as their last name. That's the psycho's name, Fred Jones Sr."

"Wow," said Fred. "I don't think we have the same history at all."

"I think we'll have to work that one out for ourselves, then," said the local Velma. "What about this? Ed Machine, the CEO of a big local company, has disappeared from his home. You could help me solve that one; he's helped our gang in the past, no doubt for his own sinister motives."

"Sounds like a police matter," said Daphne.

"You don't know our local police," said the Crystal Cove Velma.

"No monster angle to it," said Fred. "Is there anything else, some new monster case?"

The local Velma said, "If you're looking for a monster, you could check out the Executioner. He's been attacking the Destroido Corporation and its employees, dressed all in black with a hooded mask like an old-time headsman. I wanted to follow that one up too, but I couldn't without help."

"Gang," Fred said, "I think we have another mystery on our hands."


	2. Broke

The local Velma said, "It's past sunset, and the wax museum will be closed soon. The coffee shop stays open late, though."

Shaggy said, "My stomach is rumbling. I need food."

Scooby whined. He was hungry too.

Daphne said, "We also need to find a place to stay, like a hotel."

"You realize you're not rich here," said the local Velma.

"Jinkies! She's right," said the out-of-town Velma. "Our credit cards and ATM cards are no good here."

"May I see one of your dollar bills?" the local Velma asked.

Fred handed her one and she looked it over carefully.

"It looks pretty good and it should pass," she said. "But technically it's counterfeit since it wasn't minted here. The serial numbers will be out of whack if they check. Oh, and the Secretary of the Treasury's name is different. That's not good."

"So, like, basically we're broke?" Shaggy asked.

"That's about right. And I'm the poorest member of our crew, so I can't help much," the local Velma said. "We could maybe enlist our Daphne, but it won't be an easy sell."

"If we can put up somewhere for the night, we can work on that tomorrow," said Fred.

"I know of a place," said the local Velma. "Our Fred's empty house. I had to learn everything about the security system when I was cleaning up after the haunting there. I can get you in."

"Is there any food there?" Shaggy asked.

"There's plenty of food in the refrigerator, as far as I know. Just don't try to make pizza. I never figured out how Pericles made the dough come alive, so better leave that alone just in case."

"There's a lot we don't know about this new place, " said Fred.

"I'll fill you in on the way," said the local Velma.

"Thanks, Velma," said Daphne.

"We'd better start using a different name for me to tell us apart," the out-of-town Velma suggested. "You could call me Dace. It's not really my middle name, though a lot of people think so. It's a nickname I picked up at my other high school, 'Dace the Mace' Dinkley."

"Why that name?" asked the local Velma.

"I'm a lot stronger in my upper body than I look. Someone tried to push me around and found that out the hard way," said Dace. "My real middle name is Daisy; that got shortened and changed to rhyme with 'mace' and there you have it."

"How strong are you?" asked Velma.

"Strong enough to pick up Fred, Shaggy, and Scooby and run with them," Dace said.

"Jinkies," said Velma.

They arrived at the empty Jones house and Velma got them in.

"I need to get back to the museum," she told them. "Any other questions?"

Scooby asked, "Relma, rhy a rarm? Rhy not Rooby-Dum or Ruby-Doo?"

Velma looked blank.

Shaggy said, "Like, he means, if Shaggy's parents had to send Scooby away, why not to one of his relatives like Scooby-Dum or Ruby-Doo instead of some farm?"

"I've never heard of those relatives," said Velma. "I'm not sure we know them here."

"I saw a statue of Scrappy-Doo in the museum," said Daphne. "Ruby-Doo is his mother."

Velma said in a cold voice, "We've sworn never to talk about that dog. What he did is beyond anything we can forgive."

"Rappy did rad?" asked Scooby.

"Ours was a great little pup," said Shaggy. "A little annoying sometimes, but brave as anything. He palled around with Scooby and me while the others were off doing other jobs. We didn't so much solve mysteries as, like, get into scrapes, but it was fun. Then Daphne got back with us and we had some more real mystery adventures."

"What happened to him?" asked Velma, still with a little chill in her voice.

"After the thirteen ghosts he, like, grew out of his hero worship of Scoob," said Shaggy. "He went out west to stay with Scooby's brother Yabba-Doo, who works for a deputy sheriff."

"Rabba's a real rero," said Scooby.

"I never heard of that brother, either," said Velma. "But maybe you can look up some of these relatives, see if they exist here and can help. But watch out for that pup – he's not the nice one you know."

"I guess we'd better say goodnight and let you get back to your place," said Fred. "Tomorrow we'll start to tackle the mystery."

The gang got something to eat, and settled down to watch the news on TV so they could catch up on events in this new world.

"Greetings, Mystery Incorporated the third," a voice broke in as the picture broke up.

"What is this?" asked Velma Dace. "How does he know who we are?"

"I know a great deal," said the voice. "You may call me Mr. E, and I require your help."

"Velma told us something about you," said Daphne. "You're been using the other gang for your own purposes, and lying to them. Why should we help you?'

"Because I'm the one who brought you here, and I'm the only one who can send you back," said Mr. E.

"Like, what do you want from us?" asked Shaggy.

"Something you're already planning to do, if I'm not mistaken. Stop the Executioner."

"Do you know who the Executioner is?" asked Velma Dace.

"I've found the other Mystery Incorporated did better without too much information," said Mr. E. "I'll just give you a warning: watch out for what's under the hood."

The TV resumed its normal program.


	3. On Dating Actors

"What I suggest we do first today is try to get your Daphne back on the team," said Fred the next morning.

"She won't talk to me," said Velma. "She blames me for not telling the gang sooner about Angel Dynamite. It's not fair."

"Angel Dynamite is another person we should see," suggested Dace, the other Velma. "She must have a bushel of useful information."

"I don't trust her and I won't talk with her. I blame her for not telling the gang sooner about herself," said Dace.

"Like, didn't you just say Daphne behaving like that to you wasn't fair?" asked Shaggy.

"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds," said Velma.

"Robgoblin? Rhere?" said Scooby-Doo, looking around in alarm.

"That was just a quotation from Ralph Waldo Emerson, Scooby," said Velma. "Sorry."

"Rhere's Raldo?" asked Scooby.

"Never mind," said Velma.

"Anyway, let us talk to Daphne. Maybe we can change her mind," said the other Daphne. "If anyone can, I should be able to."

"Better let Fred start it off," said Dace. "You'll scare her, being her doppelganger and all."

"Roppelganger? Rore ronsters?" Scooby was distressed.

"She just means I look like her," said Daphne.

"If Fred talks to her first I bet she'll speak to him," said Velma. "She'll want to tell him off."

Sure enough, when they drove to Daphne's family mansion and Fred knocked on the door, Daphne appeared in a rage.

"Fred Jones, or Joe Blank, or whatever, I never want to speak with you again," said the Crystal Cove Daphne. "I've moved on. Baylor Hotner is going to be the new man in my life."

"Who?" asked Fred.

"Just like you not to know the most gorgeous hunk of movie star who ever played a were-turtle in a Dusk movie," said Daphne. "He's asked me out, and I'm going."

"Fine with me," said Fred. "But what about helping with a mystery?"

"What? That's not how I expected you to react... wait... are you really Fred?"

"Not really. I'm Fred from a parallel world."

"That's a little more like the Fred I know," said Daphne. "But you're supposed to be jealous."

"I'll prove I'm who I say. Come on out, gang!" Fred called.

Out from the bushes came Shaggy, Scooby, Velma, Dace, and finally the Coolsville Daphne.

"Two of Velma? Two of me?" asked Daphne in shock.

"Like, I'm not the one you know either," said Shaggy.

"Re reither," said Scooby.

"Okay, this is very weird, but I'm not coming back to any gang to solve mysteries, the real Mystery Inc. or a copy from another world. Like my Fred said, Mystery Incorporated is dead."

"There's the mystery of how we got here, and how to get us back," said Fred. "Mr. E claims responsibility. If he has that much power and he's as bad as Velma thinks, he needs to be stopped. Plus there's an Executioner on the loose."

"Not my problem," said Crystal Cove Daphne. "I'm not doing mysteries anymore. Besides, you already have a Daphne."

"But ours doesn't have money," said Shaggy. "Like, none of us do."

"Oh, if money's what you want, that's not a problem," said Daphne. "Wait a moment."

She went to the family safe and returned with a large bundle of bills. She also produced a credit card.

"Here's my Platinum Monster Card," she said. "You can sign my name to any charges, other Daphne. Just leave me alone."

The other Daphne took the cash and the card. "Thank you, Daphne. One word of advice: don't date actors. You can't tell if they're sincere, and they almost always turn out to be villains. I mean, who better to dress up as a monster than someone who plays one in the movies? I never date actors."

"We'll, you're not me. I mean you are, but you're a different me. I'm sure Baylor Hotner is sincere. And those abs... wow," said Crystal Cove Daphne.

"You'll be sorry. And I bet once he disappoints you that you'll want back in the gang. Mystery-solving is in your blood," said Coolsville Daphne.

"Don't hold your breath," said Crystal Cove Daphne, shutting the door.

"She'll be back," said Fred.


	4. Fallen Angel

As they drove away from Daphne's house in the Coolsville version of the Mystery Machine, Fred said, "The next order of business is to visit Angel Dynamite."

"Cassidy Williams, you mean," said Velma. "If you really must."

"We have to, to see if she knows more than she's said, especially about Mr. E," said Dace, the Coolsville Velma.

"There's got to be a strong connection," Velma admitted. "Mr. E sent almost all the clues to her radio station, K-GHOUL."

"Who do you think Mr. E is, really?" asked Daphne.

"He knows about the missing kids. Most likely he's one of them, just like Cassidy turned out to be. If he was Brad Chiles he would have revealed himself to Fred by now. So my money is on Ricky Owens," said Velma.

"Like, what do we know about Ricky?" asked Shaggy.

"Cassidy was once in love with him. It said so in her diary which she showed to us, pretending Mr. E sent it. It makes me angry how much she lied to us, and how I fell for it when she asked for time to reveal it in her own way, once I caught on," said Velma.

"Ries are rad," agreed Scooby-Doo.

"Sad?" asked Daphne.

"Glad?" asked Fred.

"Plaid?" asked Shaggy.

"Rad! Rawful, revil," said Scooby.

"Oh, why didn't you say so. Bad!" said Shaggy. For an instant he looked blank, as if reacting to the word. Then he shook his head to clear it.

They drove into the parking lot of K-GHOUL, a one-person radio station at the top of a wooded hill near town. The camper truck where Cassidy slept was parked beside it.

"Something's wrong. It looks damaged," said Velma. "The door is torn halfway off its hinges."

She got out of the car and called, "Cassidy? Are you all right?"

There was no answer.

"Let's split up gang, and look for clues," said Fred. "Daphne, you and I will check the main building. Velma and Dace, check around outside. Shaggy and Scooby, you check the camper truck."

As Velma and Dace began to look carefully around the grounds and the woods, Velma asked, "Was your Shaggy ever in love?"

"He has been, on and off," said Dace. "Mostly off, since his appetite and our travels seem to get in the way of anything long-term. The most serious was a young woman named Rachel. She's now a reporter in Coolsville. Her dog, Roxanne, was Scooby's girlfriend at the same time."

"Aha!" said Velma. "No wonder it worked so well. What happened to them?"

"Our international travels started going strong, and Shaggy didn't want a long-distance relationship, so he broke up with her," said Dace.

"I see. Did she take it hard?" asked Velma.

"For a while, but now she's dating the pop star J.C. Chasez, and as far as I know she's doing fine," said Dace.

"I tried to date our Shaggy, but dog issues got between us," said Velma. "I'm over him now. I know sooner or later I'll find someone else... well, I hope so, anyway."

"There's a guy I'm interested in, but I'll have to wait until he gets out of jail," said Dace.

"Jinkies! I'm not sure I should take romantic advice from you," said Velma.

"I wouldn't date a really vicious criminal. Winsor is sweet and I'm sure he'll reform for me," said Dace.

"Watch out for trying to change the guy," said Velma. "That's part of what went wrong with me and Shaggy."

"Hey, look at this," said Dace. "A music disk stuck into the bark of a tree."

"Good clue," said Velma. "Cassidy uses CDs like throwing stars. Maybe she was fighting whoever did this."

They looked around and found scuffles but no clear footprints.

Dace pulled out the music disk and checked it over. "Hmm, there's a single by Sham the Shame and the Egyptian Kings on here: Yummy Mummy."

"Cassidy likes to play songs with monster themes at K-GHOUL," said Velma.

She took the disk from Dace and flipped it over. "Strange, there's something written on the other side. One word: 'NOTED'."

"Could Cassidy have written that just to mark the CD?" asked Dace.

"She knows better than to write on the recording side of a CD," said Velma. "This has to be a clue."

* * *

Meanwhile, Shaggy and Scooby went to the camper truck.

"Like, it looks like the place where Cassidy lives, which means a kitchen, which means food," said Shaggy.

"Reah! Rood," said Scooby, licking his lips.

They opened the door and came face-to-face with the Executioner. He was large and powerful, and looked dangerous in his face-concealing hood. In his right hand was a headsman's axe.

"Zoinks! Run!" cried Shaggy.

They ran completely around the truck twice with the Executioner after them. Then they ducked inside and came out disguised as two medieval ladies-in-waiting.

"Oh Mr. Executioner, I just love a man with big, strong muscles," said Shaggy in a gushy falsetto voice.

"Re roo," said Scooby, also attempting a falsetto.

"What are you doing here?" asked the Executioner in a deep, angry voice.

"We're ladies in waiting," said Shaggy. "So we're, like, waiting. But go right on in. The King would like a word with you."

"What are you doing here?" the Executioner asked again.

Without waiting for an answer he pushed them both inside the camper truck and slammed the door. Then he pushed the camper truck so hard that it began to roll rapidly down the hill.

The two inside tried to push open the door, but the hard slam had jammed it shut.

"Rhelp! Rhelp!" called Scooby.

Daphne and Fred rushed out of the studio and jumped into the Mystery Machine. As a perfect team, Fred backed the van after the rolling camper truck while Daphne tossed a rope with a grappling hook and caught the bumper of the other vehicle. Fred's expert driving pulled the other car back just before it went over a cliff.

"Jinkies! What's happening?" asked Velma, running up with Dace.

"Like, we nearly lost our heads to the Executioner!" said Shaggy.

"Reah, the Rexecutioner," said Scooby.

With the rest of the gang pushing and Fred in the Mystery Machine pulling, they got the camper truck back onto flat ground. Shaggy and Scooby opened a window and crawled out.

"Like, why didn't the old disguise routine work?" asked Shaggy. "It works almost every time."

"Revery rime," said Scooby.

"Maybe the monsters are smarter in this world?" asked Velma.

"Anyway, there was no sign of Cassidy in there," said Shaggy. "Did anyone else find her?"

"No," said Daphne. "There was nobody in the studio."

"We found a clue, this CD, but no Cassidy," said Velma. "I hope she got away safely."


	5. Clown Town

"Like, who do you think this Executioner is?" asked Shaggy.

"Possible suspects include Mr. E, Ed Machine, or someone working for Professor Pericles," said Velma.

"Mr. E? But he was the one who got us here to solve the Executioner case," said Daphne.

"It's been known to happen that the person who calls us in is the villain, trying to throw off suspicion," said Dace.

"It happens pretty often," said Fred.

"Once someone dressed like that gave me a message from Mr. E at the Royal Knights Faire," Velma said.

"Zoinks, that's suspicious," said Shaggy.

"And Mr. E and Cassidy have had a falling out," said Velma. "She told us she didn't care if we gave our disk piece to him or to Pericles."

"Disk piece?" asked Daphne.

"Long story," said Velma. "Pericles, Mr. E, and Mayor Jones all wanted them; they're a key to finding a treasure. Professor Pericles had one, and the other was probably lost in the confusion when a cave was flooded."

"What about Pericles?" asked Fred. "He seems like a good suspect for the Executioner."

"He's a parrot, so he can't be the Executioner himself," said Velma. "He's done a monster in a costume, but it was all flowing robes that he flew around in."

"Rushed roo rard," said Scooby-Doo.

"Yeah," said Shaggy. "That dude pushed too hard to be a parrot."

"But it could be Ed Machine, working for either Pericles or Mr. E," said Velma.

"Who's Ed Machine?" asked Fred.

"He's the CEO of Destroido Corporation, but he's also the henchman of Mr. E. He's brought us messages and clues from E," said Velma.

"He's disappeared from his home, right?" asked Daphne. "He's most likely a victim of Pericles, not working for him."

"Yes, but it's possible Pericles brainwashed him. He knows the formula for a chemical that makes people so crazy with love so they'll do anything," said Velma.

"Zoinks!" said Shaggy. "That's terrible."

"Rove raves," said Scooby.

"I watched him make a batch of antidote, so I know how to make it," said Velma. "I'll give you some, just in case."

Dace said, "I think I've figured out that message on the CD. It's run together – 'NOT ED' instead of 'NOTED'. Cassidy is saying it's not Ed Machine."

"Then who could it be?" asked Fred.

"Like, I don't know, but Scoob and I can't think on an empty stomach," said Shaggy. "I want to try that dessert place I saw when we drove by downtown today: Fruitmeir's."

"Ruitmeir's" echoed Scooby, smacking his lips.

"Probably a good choice," said Velma. "My Shaggy and Scooby liked it a lot."

They drove up in front of the place, where a long line was forming.

Just as they were heading for a parking spot in front of a building, a clown-car hot rod shaped like a baby carriage cut into the space. In the car was a huge masked clown wearing a baby outfit.

"He's back!" one of the people in line shouted. "Run for your lives!"

The crowd scattered.

"My mama won't let me eat this stuff because she don't know what's in it and it might be bad for babies. Waah, waah! That makes me sad, and when the Crybaby Clown gets sad other people get hurt bad!" said the Clown.

He pulled a baby bottle off of an ammunition band around his chest, and shook it until it glowed green. Then he threw it. A second later there was an explosion that blew out the glass windows in the front of the store.

The Crybaby Clown pulled out fast in his clown car.

"Let's follow him!" Fred said.

"Wait, Fred," said Daphne. "We have to make sure nobody was hurt."

They found another clown inside. Franklin Fruitmeir lay on the ground, his makeup smeared and his face scratched from the broken glass.

"Another monster attack on Fruitmeir's," he gasped. "It's a good thing I have insurance."

"We'll call for an ambulance," said Daphne. She dialed 911 on the phone on the counter.

As they drove away, Fred said, "Fruitmeyer may have done it himself for the insurance."

"How?" asked Velma. "He was attacked."

"All it takes is a few seconds out of sight and anyone can change costumes. He could have sneaked in the back and pretended to be hurt," said Fred.

"I don't think that's very likely, Fred," said Daphne.

"You know it's most likely the least likely suspect," Fred answered. "Anyway, the guy is wrecking the town. We have to stop him."

There were sounds of other explosions in the distance.

"I'm sure you can," said Velma. "My gang is scattered and discredited to our parents. It will be up to you guys."

"We can do it," said Fred.

Just then Velma's cell phone rang. "Velma, this is Mr. E. I have an offer for you. Work for me for a while and I will help you get your old gang back."

"Will you also send the others back to their home dimension?" asked Velma.

"I'll throw that in as part of the deal, once the Executioner case is solved," said Mr. E.

"What kind of work?" asked Velma.

"Missions to keep Pericles getting all the disk pieces. That would be disastrous for Crystal Cove, I assure you," said Mr. E.

"It's a deal," said Velma.

"Don't do it," said Dace. "I don't trust him."

"I don't either, but it's our best chance of getting more information," said Velma.

"I'll send a car for you," said Mr. E. "This deal comes with martial-arts and stealth training, which you will be needing on the missions or if you run into the Executioner."

"Speaking of the Executioner, he attacked Cassidy Williams at the radio station today," said Velma.

"I have spoken with her and she is safe," said Mr. E. "Not with me, as I offered, but she is safely in hiding."

"Do you know anything about the Crybaby Clown?" Fred asked.

"I never heard of him until today. He suddenly started attacking everything in Crystal Cove."

"Nothing to do with you, either of these cases?" asked Dace.

"I'm not responsible for them, if that's what you mean," said Mr. E. "Velma, your car should be pulling up any moment. Your sparring partner will be in the back seat."

"Sparring partner?" asked Velma.

"You'll see in a moment," said Mr. E. "I trust you two will put aside any past differences to work for a common cause."

Velma left the Mystery Machine and approached the car. The back door opened and Velma looked inside. She stopped for a moment, taken aback.

"Hot Dog Water?" she asked.

"In the flesh, V," said Hot Dog Water. "Mr. E got me out of jail on parole. Can we let bygones be bygones?"

"You've been my worst enemy at school, and then you did that Manticore business..." said Velma.

"I've had enough of fighting," said Hot Dog Water. "I'm willing to give it a rest if you are. I went too far with the Manticore, I admit. People got hurt. I'll never do anything like that again, all right?"

"All right," said Velma, with a tense smile. She offered a hand to shake, and got into the car. They drove away.

"I think we owe it to Velma to make our best effort to bring back the rest of her gang," said Fred.

"I agree," said Daphne. "I hate that she has to work with that scheming Mr. E. If she had her Shaggy, Scooby, and Fred back, maybe she wouldn't have to."

"Rhybaby Rown?" asked Scooby. "Rexecutioner?"

"We'll have to solve those cases too, before more people get hurt. But the local gang gets the credit, so they can re-establish themselves with Crystal Cove and their parents," said Dace.

"Like, to get the credit, they'll have to be back," said Shaggy.

"I have a plan for that," said Fred. "You and Scooby will be the bait."

"Rait? Roh-oh," said Scooby-Doo.


	6. Recovery

"Here's what you need to do, Shaggy..." said Fred.

A short time later, Shaggy made a call from a remote phone booth outside of Crystal Cove.

"Hi, Mom? This is Shaggy. Like, I got some leave and I went and got Scooby. Is it all right if we come back for a short visit?"

Paula Rogers said, "It is most certainly not all right. Dragemoff's Farm for Wayward Animals shouldn't have released Scooby to you. And you shouldn't be getting leave so soon. I want you take Scooby right back."

"Like, sure Mom, but I got kind of lost. Could you give me directions?" asked Shaggy.

"Where are you? Stay right there and we'll send people to get you," said Paula Rogers.

Shaggy gave them the location.

"Well, we have half the information now," said Fred when Shaggy told him how the call went. "Dace, can you find Dragemoff's Farm for Wayward Animals?"

The other Velma wasn't with them, but they were still using the nickname for their Velma to avoid confusion.

"Sure, let me check the net," said Dace. She had a laptop with a working internet connection, borrowed from the Jones house. "Good luck for us. It's only a couple of miles northeast of here."

"Like, not so good luck. I see a farm truck in the distance, coming this way fast," said Shaggy.

"He must have believed your parents and not checked if Scooby was still there," said Daphne.

Here's where the bait part comes in," said Fred. "Let him chase the two of you, and while he's distracted we'll raid the farm and get the other Scooby free."

"Like, what if the military school guys come after us too, while you're gone?" asked Shaggy.

"Even better," said Fred. "You're both wearing the tracers I gave you. If you get captured they'll take you back to the base, and we can find it easily. But try not to get captured. I think the other Scooby will know where his Shaggy is."

"Zoinks!" said Shaggy. "What if they shoot at us?"

"Rot a rery rafe plan, Rhred," said Scooby.

"It was the best I could do," said Fred.

"The farmer's almost here. Better get out and start running," said Dace.

* * *

As luck would have it, they found Scooby-Doo sneaking out under the electric fence. With the farmer gone and the farmer's wife inside the house making lemonade, they were able to rescue Scooby without incident.

"Boy am I glad to see rou," said this Scooby. As Velma had said, he was much more understandable than his counterpart. "Where's Rhaggy?"

"That's what we need to ask you," said Fred. "Do you know the name of the military school where they sent him?"

"I do," said Scooby. "Barnstow Military Academy."

"Great!" said Fred. "Now we just need to pick up Scooby and Shaggy, and then we'll go get Shaggy."

"Huh?" said Scooby.

It took some explaining, but meeting his identical counterpart helped the Crystal Cove Scooby to understand what was going on. He insisted on rescuing his friend solo, so the others wouldn't get in trouble. He commandeered a tank at the military academy and soon had Shaggy free.

"We've got more names to keep straight now," said Dace. "The Coolsville Shaggy can be Norville, all right?"

"Like, if I have to," said Norville.

"Like, what about Scooby-Two for the other Scooby?" said Shaggy.

"Not so good," said Daphne. "That brings back bad memories."

"Row about Scoobert for the other me?" asked the Crystal Cove Scooby.

"Rokay," said Scoobert.

* * *

Cruising around in the Mystery Machine looking for Fred bore fruit also. They found him bearded and ragged, going door to door in the nearby town of Pacific Pools, asking everyone if Brad Chiles or Judy Reeves lived there. He had been getting the door slammed in his face.

"Couldn't you have done a little better detective work than that, Fred?" Dace asked.

"I can't think like a detective without the gang," Fred said. "It was the best I could do."

He was clearly an emotional and mental wreck, so they didn't press him too hard. He grasped the duplicate situation after a little while, and the Fred from Coolsville renamed himself Frederick.

Fred drove his own Mystery Machine and followed them back to Crystal Cove after Dace promised to use her detective skills to help him find his parents. They took a roundabout way back to Fred's house to avoid the spectacle of two Mystery Machines going through the center of town, so they avoided any encounters with the Crybaby Clown.

* * *

When they were back at Fred's house, they brainstormed what to do next.

Frederick said, "We need to restore the reputation of you guys, especially Shaggy with his parents, so they don't send him back to military school the first time they see him."

"Like, I'm all over that," said Shaggy, "But how?"

"I suggest you call the new mayor, Janet Nettles, and offer to help solve the Crybaby Clown case," said Dace. "There's been so much property damage and bad publicity for the town that she's probably desperate."

Frederick placed the call, as stand-in for the leader, since the local Fred was still too mentally shaky.

When he got off the line, he said, "She wants us to come down to City Hall tomorrow night and reassure the people that the Clown will be caught. I agreed you would do that."

"Rus, not rou?" asked Scooby-Doo.

"Yeah, you," said Scoobert.

"It needs to be the real team, not stand-ins," said Dace. "Besides, I'm allergic to clowns. I don't want to get close to him again if I can help it."

"I'll help set the traps, if you want, Fred," said Frederick.

"Traps? Why traps?" asked the dazed local Fred.

"Because the Crybaby Clown will see it as a challenge, and he's sure to show up," said Dace. "It's the perfect opportunity to trap him."

"All my trapping knowledge seems to be gone," said Fred. "We don't have our full gang. We need our Daphne."

"We can try to get her back one more time," said Daphne. "But she was pretty strong in her refusal last time we asked. She's moved on from mysteries, and she's dating Baylor Hotner.

"S-she's what?" asked Fred.

"Apparently you broke her heart when you broke the engagement to look for your parents," said Daphne.

"She's really trying to move on," said Dace.

"Well, I don't believe it," said Fred.

"Neither do I," said Frederick. "Mystery solving is in her blood. If you go over to her house and ask her, I'm sure she'll come back."

* * *

Daphne refused, as the other Daphne and Dace thought she would. To add insult to injury, Baylor Hotner was there at her house and offered them autographs.

"Don't worry," said Fred. "She's totally in. She just had to pretend in front of that Hotner guy. I feel my trapping powers returning. Frederick, let's make a doughnut-themed trap."

"Sure, why not?" said Frederick.

In the process of setting up the trap in the room where the meeting was to be held, they discovered the Clown had been there already and set up his own smelly diaper-bomb on the ceiling.

"This is perfect," said Fred. "We''ll defuse this and replace it with our own identical-looking one filled with quick-hardening doughnut batter, which will cover him and stick him down. Then when I give the word, Daphne will pull a cord and a giant doughnut will come down around his arms, pinning him so we can unmask him in front of everyone."

"You're sure she'll be there?" asked the local Velma. (She had returned from her latest training session with Hot Dog Water, and Dace had briefed her on everything.)

"Of course she will. I guarantee it," said Fred.

"If she doesn't, and the Clown gets loose, a lot of people could be hurt," said the Coolsville Daphne.

"Roh-roh," said Scooby-Doo.

"Nothing to worry about," said Fred.

* * *

On the night of the meeting, everything was going well. Shaggy's parents seemed to buy his story that he had been made a general to work undercover in Crystal Cove and fight crime along with Scooby-Doo. People were so desperate that they would accept anything at all that offered hope of stopping the terrorist monster.

From the back of the room came a screeching noise as the Crybaby Clown dragged his fingernails across a blackboard.

"You know how I make a living," said the Clown. "I'm a bad clown. Mystery Incorporated won't find me as easy to stop as Redbeard's Ghost or Mano Tiki Tia. So I have a proposition for ya. Pay me one million dollars and I go away for good. Otherwise...'

"Sounds like a fine offer to me," said Sheriff Bronson Stone. "I'll pass the hat."

"You're not wrecking the town on my watch," said Shaggy, still into his general role.

"Oh yeah? Well, look up there!" said the Clown. He pointed to the diaper bomb.

The crowd started to panic, but Fred was cool. "Do your worst. In fact, I'll do it for you."

Fred pushed a button and the diaper bomb swung down and dropped a load of sticky doughnut dough all over the Crybaby Clown.

"Now Daphne! Pull the cord!" said Fred.

For a moment, nothing happened. The Clown began to eat himself free. Then Daphne ran to the cord and pulled it, and the giant doughnut dropped down, pinning the Clown's arms just as planned.

Fred and the gang moved forward.

"Now let's see who the Crybaby Clown really is." He pulled off the Clown's mask, and they all exclaimed in chorus, "Baylor Hotner?"

"Just as I suspected," said Velma (who had been briefed by Dace). "He was rehearsing for a new movie part. He couldn't help but boast on his Facebook page: 'I'm doing something new, not another Dusk movie. Watch this space. You'll laugh, you'll cry, when you see my amazing new role'."

"That's right," said Baylor Hotner. "I was perfecting my part, and I would have gotten an Oscar, too, if it wasn't for you meddling kids."

Daphne Blake came into the room. "Hi, Mom and Dad. Sorry I'm late. Did I miss anything? Oh, Baylor! What have you done?"

The other Daphne, the one who had pulled the cord, slipped into the shadows.

"We could have gone off together," said Baylor. "I would have been a superstar and you would have been my sweet small-town girlfriend, if you and your friends hadn't ruined it."

Daphne turned on the others. "How could you do this to Baylor?"

"But... he's a villain," said Fred in shock. "All the property damage and injuries he caused..."

"He would never have hurt me, would you, Baylor?" said Daphne.

"Of course not, darling," Baylor lied smoothly.

"See there?" said Daphne.

"I was hoping you would want to come back to me... I mean to the gang," said Fred.

"No," said Daphne. "I'm not coming back."

Daphne left with her parents. The police took the Crybaby Clown away, and the Mayor gave a polite speech thanking Mystery Incorporated, which everyone applauded.

The gang left the building, and met with their duplicates who were waiting in an alley outside.

"So, it wasn't my Daphne who sprang the trap," Fred said in a miserable voice. "It was you, other-world Daphne."

"I had to be prepared, just in case," said Daphne.

"You carried us, all of you from the other world," said Fred. "We won this time because of you, but what happens when you're gone? Things will never be the same. We're finished."

"Don't say that, Fred," said Velma. "We'll find a way."

"I don't see how,' said Fred.

"Rooby rooby roo," said Scooby, and it was his most mournful victory cry ever.


	7. Replacement

Frederick scowled at Fred.

"I don't like your ingratitude, Mr.," he said. "When we got here, your Shaggy and Scooby were imprisoned. Our Norville and Scoobert put their lives on the line to help get them out."

"Like, we're grateful," said Shaggy, nodding his head with its military-style buzz-cut.

"Re too," said Scooby.

"Like, you're welcome," said Norville. "A myself in need is a myself indeed."

"Rikewise," said Scoobert.

Frederick said, "Velma had no one to turn to. We helped her. You were a hobo on a hopeless quest. We brought you back. Your town was being terrorized by a villain. We caught him. We gave you the credit and now you're the town heroes."

"But... we're not heroes," said Fred. "Not any more. It was all you guys."

"Deal with it. Get your act together," said Frederick. "Or fall apart. Go back out there door to door for the rest of your life, if that's what you want."

"That's a little harsh, Frederick," said the Coolsville Daphne. "Fred had been through some rough times. He found out his whole life was based on a lie."

"As far as I can tell, he rejected any help from his friends and broke up the gang. Right, Fred?" asked Frederick.

"You broke Daphne's heart," said Velma. "You didn't have to do that."

"Like, my parents would still have sent us away, but the rest was all you," said Shaggy.

"I wanted to find my real parents on my own..." said Fred.

"How's that been working out for you?" asked Dace.

"Lousy," said Fred. "I was wrong. I'm sorry."

Shaggy said, "Like, that's the first sensible thing you're said since you've returned, man. Welcome back."

"Relcome back," said Scooby-Doo. "I romised we'd get back together and stop Pericles. He's got both disk rieces."

Velma said, "What? I thought the other piece was lost in the caves."

"He got them both. He rhowed me," said Scooby. "I said we'd stop him or my name wasn't Scooby Dooby Doo."

"Rit's rot," said Scoobert.

"Like, it's officially Scoobert Dooby Doo, but close enough," said Shaggy.

Norville said. "Like, for us Dooby's just part of his catch-phrase. There's a Dooby Dooby Doo, his singing identical cousin. But our Scooby has no middle name."

"Never mind," said Velma. "The point is what are we going to do about Pericles and the pieces of the Planispheric Disk?"

"What about the missions Mr. E was going to send you on?" asked Dace.

"Velma? You're doing missions for Mr. E?" asked Fred.

"Like, what's that all about?" asked Shaggy.

"It was part of a deal to get information to get all of you back. E wants me to go to Russia and find a piece that he thinks is hidden there. Now that you're all back I don't have to go, but..."

"But you're still going?" asked Daphne.

"If I don't go, he'll send someone else and he'll end up with the piece for sure. If I go, I can get the piece for us, maybe."

"E can't be trusted," said Fred. "Everything he told us was a lie. He told us to find out what happened to the original Mystery Incorporated. He knew exactly what happened because he was one of them. It was all for his own agenda."

"I know," said Velma. "Still, his agenda may be good. He's saying that he wants to keep Pericles from getting all the pieces. If Pericles gets them, we know for sure he'll use them for evil. E says they could destroy Crystal Cove, or worse."

"But Russia, alone? Isn't that dangerous?" asked Daphne.

"I won't be alone. I have a teammate, and we're starting to hit it off pretty well," said Velma. "If the mission goes well I'd like to propose her as our replacement Daphne."

"Replacement Daphne?" asked Fred. "What do you mean?"

"We've all seen how hopeless we are without a five-member team. These guys from another world are an intact team and look how well they did on the Crybaby Clown case," said Velma. "We used to be like that."

"Nobody can replace Daphne," said Fred. "Not for me."

"Get a grip, Fred," said Frederick. "There's mystery work to be done. You can't do it without a full team. I'm sure Velma has a good person in mind."

"I do," said Velma. "But let me give her a trial on this mission before I put her name forward."

* * *

While Velma was gone on her trip, Dace did internet searches to try to get a line on Brad Chiles and Judy Reeves.

Dace told him, "I can't find anyone using their real names who is a possible match. They must have cover identities. But I scanned all the pictures you have and ran a program to age their faces forward about twenty years. It will take time, but image recognition software may find them. The program is running now."

Fred said, "Maybe you should age them more. It seems like it was longer, somehow."

"It can't be that much longer," said Dace. "How long ago did they have you? I thought it was around two years after they disappeared."

"I... don't ask me. The concept of time confuses me," said Fred.

"They disappeared in the late seventies, so..." Dace stared into space, her eyes losing their focus. "I lost my train of thought. Never mind, I'm sure it will come back to me. Anyway, we'll let this program run for a few days and see if anything turns up."

* * *

Velma returned from her weekend trip to Russia. The mission was a flop, but they had a backup plan. Mr. E purchased the hut of Baba Yaga and had the whole thing shipped to America.

At school, Velma gathered the whole gang together. "Gang, here is the person I'd like to propose as our fifth member, replacing Daphne. Here's Marcie Fleach."

The tall girl with frizzy hair walked over to them. "Hi."

"Hot Dog Water?" the others asked in chorus.


	8. Baba Yaga

That evening, after school, Velma told the gang, "The shipment from Russia is coming in to the docks tonight. I think we should meet it."

Marcie said, "I don't think Mr. E wants us to do that. If Curator Vronsky finds out we're searching for something in that hut, he might claim the Piece for Russia, since it wasn't officially listed in the bill of sale."

Shaggy said, "Like, do you have to do everything Mr. E tells you?"

Fred said, "You work for E. Divided loyalties are going to be an issue, aren't they, Hot Dog Water?"

"No," said Marcie. "Velma's my friend now, the only one I've got. My first loyalty is to her, and you. I'll go meet the ship with you."

Velma smiled. "Thanks, Marcie."

Frederick, the Coolsville Fred, said, "We'll stay back here at your house while you go to the docks, Fred. We don't want to confuse anyone with duplicates if we don't have to."

Dace, the Coolsville Velma, told Fred, "My computer search has turned up a possible match for your parents that I want to follow up."

Fred asked, "What is it?"

"There's a rare public picture of a couple at a book signing a couple of years ago: 'Sternum to Sternum: The True Story Behind the Hit TV Show'."

"Sternum and Sternum! They're famous trappers: they invented the Flattenhower 8000. That's so awesome – it explains why trapping is in my blood," said Fred. "Where are they?"

"They haven't been seen in public for a while," said Dace. "They retired on the proceeds of their television royalties and trap patents. I'm having no luck with an address, but I'll try to dig up an email while you're gone."

* * *

At the docks, they watched as an enormous crate was unloaded from a ship. Curator Vronsky and his assistant Anna Arkadyevna were not pleased to see them.

"You decadent bourgeois Americans cannot wait to get your hands on your purchase?" asked Vronsky. "Your greed knows no bounds."

"You will get what is coming to you," said Arkadyevna. "As will anyone who tampers with our precious historic heritage."

"Da, the curse of Baba Yaga will be upon all of you," said Vronsky.

"C-curse of Baba Yaga?" asked Shaggy. "Like, who is Baba Yaga?"

"A witch of Slavic folklore, said to be able to fly with a giant mortar and pestle, move her house around on chicken legs, and eat children" said Marcie.

"You know curses aren't real, don't you, Shaggy?" asked Velma.

"Like no, I don't know that" said Shaggy.

"Me reither," said Scooby-Doo.

Up on the unloading platform the crate containing the hut burst open and the hut stood up on its chicken legs and began walking toward them menacingly.

"Zoinks! See what I mean?" said Shaggy.

Before anyone could react, the hut grabbed Arkadyevna and threw her inside. It kept coming.

"Improvised trapping time. Quick, let's roll out that spool of cable," said Fred. "We'll trip it."

They unrolled a length of cable and stretched it across the monster's path, but the hut stepped nimbly over the tripwire. As it walked away down the dock it knocked over a crate.

"It's getting away! To the Mystery Machine and we'll chase it," said Fred.

Unfortunately, the mobile house seemed to hear this. Limping a little, it stepped into the parking lot and kicked the Mystery Machine onto its side before setting off down the road.

"What did it do to you, baby?" Fred said. "You will be avenged."

"It's going to take a tow truck to pull the Mystery Machine back upright," said Velma. "Let's call our backup team."

They called the other Mystery Incorporated at Fred's house and soon were on the road with them in the Coolsville copy of the Mystery Machine, following police reports that the monster had headed into the Haunted Hills.

As all of them walked up into the hills, Marcie said, "This is my first real case with you. Any investigation pointers?"

"The basics are food, running away, and traps," said Shaggy.

"And food!" said Scooby.

"Right: food, running away, traps, and food," said Shaggy.

Velma pulled Marcie away from them. "Don't listen to them. We logical types need to stick together."

"Thanks, V," Marcie said.

Velma said, "The real key is finding clues... and we just found a big one."

It was the hut of Baba Yaga, sitting on its legs in a clearing.

"That's not just a clue. It's the whole mystery," said Fred.

Velma opened the door and shined a light inside - directly on the face of Baba Yaga.

The witch cackled and came flying out on her mortar and flailing with her pestle. "You disturbed my home and for that you will receive my curse. I will eat you whole!"

"Zoinks! Run, Scoob!" said Shaggy.

Everybody ran back towards the road and the car. The witch was catching up, when a large net was thrown over her. Scoobert, Norville, Frederick, Daphne, and Dace pulled her and the flying mortar to the ground in a dog-pile.

"It's nice to have a full backup team on the job," said Frederick. "One set to run, and one set to trap."

The second string pulled back and let the Crystal Cove group take over for the unmasking.

"Now we can see who Baba Yaga really is," said the local Fred. He pulled off the mask and revealed a man with a heavy black beard.

"Curator Vronsky?" they said in chorus.

"I suspected as much," said Velma. "There had to be someone operating the hut by remote control, someone with a good angle of view to see our tripwire and to direct the robot to knock over our car."

"But why did you do it?" asked Marcie.

"I wanted to become a decadent capitalist myself, so I took the opportunity to steal and smuggle precious Faberge eggs into this country to sell on the black market," said Vronsky. "I would have gotten away with it if it hadn't been for you meddling kids and your meddling doubles."

Fred asked, "Why did you come up here in the Haunted Hills?"

"I altered the legs of the hut to work mechanically under my remote control, but they were damaged at the dock, and I had to make repairs to get them walking properly again. There were too many eggs to carry away by hand. I had to have the hut."

"What did you do with Anna Arkadyevna?" asked Shaggy.

"You'll find her tied up inside. She was becoming suspicious of me and I had to kidnap her," said Vronsky.

They found Arkadyevna and untied her, and also found the secret compartment where the eggs had been hidden. Velma, Dace, and Marcie searched further and found a rosewood box. Inside it was a piece of the Planispheric Disk.

They called Sheriff Stone to come pick up Vronsky.

While they were waiting, a call came in for Marcie on the wrist video phone she carried. She went a little ways into the trees to answer it.

"This is Mr. E.; I want a report now," he told her.

"We've found Baba Yaga's hut and recovered a Disk Piece," Marcie told him.

"I want that Piece you found turned over to me. It's only in the country because I paid to get it here," E demanded.

"I'm sorry, but the new Mystery Incorporated doesn't trust you. They're going to hang unto it to keep it out of the claws of Pericles... and you," said Marcie.

"Listen to me, Hot Dog Water," said Mr. E. "Don't give your loyalty to Mystery Inc.; they aren't long for this world. Besides that, I got you paroled, and I can get it revoked. I don't think you want to be back in prison."

"I haven't done anything to violate parole," said Marcie.

"If you're as powerful as I am, you can always find something," said Mr. E. "What about your association with impersonators of Mystery Inc. who cannot provide real identification, and who have been using the credit card of the real Daphne Blake in a fraudulent manner?"

"You wouldn't," said Marcie. "They are still working on the Executioner case for you. You can't pull them into trouble."

"I haven't heard any progress on that case, and now they're teaming up to defy me," said Mr. E. "This is not looking good for their prospects of returning to their home dimension."

After Mr. E hung up, Marcie reported the conversation to the others.

"We're not turning the Piece over to him, and that's final," said Fred. "Let him do his worst."

"His worst might be me going back to jail, or going on the run," said Marcie. "Maybe all of you extra-dimensional doubles should run with me."

"We'll think of something," said Frederick. "Meanwhile, I'll stow this Piece in the Mystery Machine and set up some traps around it for safety, until we can get it to a good hiding place."

When he opened the back of the van, the Executioner was inside. The Executioner grabbed the Piece from Fredericks's hand, and threw him back so he crashed into a tree.

Before they could stop him, the monster moved behind the wheel of the Coolsville copy of the Mystery Machine and drove off.

"One good thing," Shaggy said. "E can't demand the Piece from us any more."

"Like, unless that was E," said Norville.


	9. Fred's Parents

Dace said, "Velma, may I borrow your laptop for a few minutes?"

"Sure, but how is that going to help?" Velma asked. "We've lost the disk piece and the Mystery Machine."

"The Mystery Machine that was stolen is ours," said Frederick. "We've had years to install custom anti-theft devices that we can operate by remote control."

"Activating web services..." said Velma. "Remote viewing... Seat-belt traps won't work because the Executioner isn't wearing his. But the hidden camera shows the disk piece is on the seat beside him. That's his first mistake."

She typed in a command and the passenger-side seat tilted up, dropping the piece into a secure compartment below.

"Now we just lock the doors, take control of the Mystery Machine, and bring him back here. The remote control feature's been used against us once or twice, but it's still worthwhile for times like these."

Soon the Mystery Machine drove itself back to them. Nobody was inside.

"Jinkies, I forgot to lock the skylight. It looks like he got out that way."

Frederick said, "Since the van's been in enemy hands, we'd better give her a thorough check for bugs and traps."

They gave it a good going over but found nothing. While they were doing this, Sheriff Stone finally showed up and they turned Curator Vronsky over to him. Anna Arkadyevna got a ride back into town with the Sheriff as well.

"Like, we'd better check out the other Mystery Machine we left at the docks, too," said Shaggy. "Who knows what bugs they put into it?"

"Reah, I don't like rugs," said Scooby-Doo. "They can rite."

"These aren't that kind of bugs, Scooby," said Marcie. "But they could give away our plans to whoever is behind the Executioner."

"Do you really think it's Mr. E?" asked Velma.

"I doubt it. He's not quite that devious. But since we want to keep the disk piece, let's not tell E for now. His threats have become bothersome," said Marcie.

They stopped by an abandoned toy factory on the way back to hide the disk in a secure place. After that, because of the danger of action by Pericles, they stopped by Velma's house and got a spray bottle of antidote to the Aphrodite potion.

They stopped by the dock to check over the other Mystery Machine and got a tow truck to set up back upright. Then they returned to Fred's house with the two vans. When they entered they immediately noticed the place had been cleaned up.

"Who's been in here?" Fred asked. "What's going on?"

"It was us," said Brad Chiles as he and Judy Reeves came down the main stairs. "We're back."

"We got your email, so we came back" said Judy. "Oh my, there are two of everyone."

"Almost everyone," said Marcie. "It's a long story."

"We'll tell ours first, then," said Brad. "The floor is open for questions."

Fred asked, "My only question is, why? Why did you stay away for so long?"

"The man who kidnapped you, the former Mayor Jones, is a dangerous man. He threatened harm against you if we got anywhere near," said Brad.

"Bodily harm, Brad," said Judy.

"You're right. Thank you, Judy. Bodily harm," said Brad.

"I guess I can understand that," said Fred. "One more question: what's my real name?"

"Your birth certificate has your name as Fredrick Herman Sternum," said Judy. "We were using an alias for our trapping work when you were born. Parents can give a child any last name they want, so that's your official name."

"Hmm, same middle name as me," said Frederick to himself.

"I'm a Sternum," said Fred with a touch of pride.

"A name to be proud of in the trapping world," said Brad. "And I hear you've been carrying on the family business."

"But, how did I end up with the same first name as my kidnapper?"

"We named you for him," said Judy. "At the time we still thought of Fred Jones as a good man."

"Oh. I see," said Fred.

"Now come into the dining room. We've made you and the gang some snacks," said Brad.

"Snacks! Like, these guys are the best," said Shaggy.

"Like, I totally agree," said Norville, the other Shaggy.

Velma whispered to Marcie, "With two Shaggys and two Scoobys, there'll be nothing left for anyone else."

That turned out to be an accurate prediction, since the two boy/dog pairs rushed to the table and gobbled up everything. The others didn't mind that much; they stood around and discussed the case.

"We have to do something about the Executioner," said Velma. "He keeps popping up and messing us around."

"Reah, rop rhe Rexecutioner," said Scoobert.

"I know a trap that would be perfect," said Brad. "What Executioner could stand up to a Kaiser Wilhelm 113 Special?"

"Excellent idea," said Fred. "Do you have any available?"

"We just happen to have brought one with us," said Judy.

"We need to figure out who he is, first," said Dace. "I suggest we visit the scenes of his previous crimes and look for clues."

"He's attacked places belonging to Destroido," said Velma. "I know of some from the news, and Mr. E may be able to give us more details."

"Do you really want to call him now?" asked Marcie. "He's going to be furious at us."

They called Mr. E anyway, and after chewing them out about the piece (which they told him was lost), he said, "There's been a new development. Dr. Benton Quest, who works for a subsidiary company of mine, has disappeared from one of our labs, where he was working on inter-dimensional experiments."

"Inter-dimensional? Was he the one who brought us here?" asked Dace.

"It was his work that went into the transporter, yes. If you don't get him back, you could be stuck here," said Mr. E.

"We'd like to come out to Destroido and look for clues," said Velma.

"It's not on the main site," said Mr. E. "It's in a remote location in case dimensional instabilities destroy everything around it."

"Zoinks! Instabilities that destroy everything?" said Shaggy.

Scoobert jumped into Shaggy's arms and Scooby jumped into Norville's arms. They each realized their mistake, hopped back down, then jumped up again into the arms of their own best friends.

* * *

The gangs followed Mr. E's directions to the remote lab, which was deep in the polluted, mutation-filled woods near the company. The place was a mess, with signs of forced entry and a struggle. Velma, Dace, and Marcie paid special attention to the equipment scattered around the room.

"It looks to me like they didn't just take Dr. Quest, but most of the dimensional portal device," said Marcie.

"But they missed a few pieces," said Velma. "I doubt they could get replacements for these integrated circuit boards in a hurry. I expect the Executioner will be back."

"It's trapping time," said Fred. "I'll set up the Kaiser Wilhelm 113 Special here in the hall, where he's bound to pass on his way in."

"I'll set a backup net trap," said Frederick. "No offense, but I don't know your parents and I don't feel like I can trust them."

"How can you say that? They're my real parents, and I have to trust them, don't I? Just like I trusted... I trusted my fake dad..." said Fred, trailing off. "All right, we'll set a backup trap."

They hid and waited for the Executioner to return. Soon they heard steps in the hall, and then the clanking sounds of the mechanical tentacles of the Kaiser Wilhelm 113 Special as they wrapped around the villain and locked around him in a tight cocoon.

They ran to check, but when they got there the Executioner clicked a button on a device he had clenched in his hand and the tentacles came loose from around him, and moved toward for the gang instead.

"Zoinks! Back up! Run!" said Shaggy.

Then the secondary trap, a simple but strong wire net, dropped from the ceiling onto the Executioner and the Kaiser Wilhelm 113 special. The Executioner flailed in the net and dropped the control when a stray tentacle struck his hand.

Fred picked up the control and turned the trapping machine off.

"Well, I guess there's no doubt about who the Executioner really is. My father," Fred said, unmasking the villain.

"Doctor Quest?" everyone said in unison.

"Let me go, you meddling kids! I have to do what Professor Pericles says. I love him," said Dr. Quest.

"It must be the Aphrodite formula," said Velma. She got the spray bottle and gave Quest a dose of the antidote.

Quest gave a gasping breath and his love-maddened expression returned to normal.

"Have you been the Executioner all this time?" asked Daphne.

"No, there have been others working for Professor Pericles who wore the costume," said Quest. "I saw a couple of them while I was a prisoner. One was a robot with a German army helmet, programmed to play back some simple phrases recorded from one of the parrot's murder victims. Another was a man with gray hair and a very strong chin."

"My real dad, Brad Chiles. I knew it," said Fred. "The way they prepared you to deal with the trap was a give-away."

"Thank you for saving me from that insidious chemical," said Dr. Quest. "I see that some of you are the parallel universe duplicates I brought here to help Mr. Owens, the owner of Destroido."

"Yes, we are," said Dace. "Do you have a way to send us back?"

"It's far easier to send you back to your own universe than to bring you here in the first place. I can give you a device that you can install in your van. If it is triggered while you are traveling at 88 miles per hour, it will return you to your home dimension."

Frederick looked around at the others. "What do you think, gang? We have a way to go home again. Should we go, or stick around to help our counterparts?"

"Stay," said Velma.

"Yeah, stay," said Shaggy.

"Reah," said Scooby.

"Go," said Fred.


	10. Dreams and Nightmares

"What's your gripe this time, Fred?" Frederick asked, as they drove back to Fred's house in the Mystery Machine.

"This is our world, and these are our mysteries to solve," said Fred. "You should go back to your world and deal with mysteries there."

"Yours seem to be serious, and we're glad to help you for a while longer," said Daphne.

"By helping so much you're solving things too fast," said Fred. "If we hadn't solved the Crybaby Clown case so quickly he would have had more time to show his true colors and my Daphne might be back with us now."

"He might have, like, hurt her or kidnapped her," said Shaggy.

"I just want her back. No offense, Hot Dog Water, but I can't call you the new Daphne," said Fred.

"I'm not her, but I think I'm pretty good on the team," said Marcie.

"I like the ray you smell," said Scooby-Doo.

"Re roo," said Scoobert.

"My Daphne smells like a fawn dipped in honey, not like greasy pork byproducts soaking in brine. No offense, Hot Dog Water," said Fred.

Marcie's face tightened and she said nothing, but Velma said, "That was very offensive, Fred. If you insult my friend any more..."

"Let him be," said Daphne. "Fred's not only lost his love, but now he's been betrayed by his real parents as well as his fake one. He has nobody."

Fred moaned, but then he said, "I still have Mr. Trapples."

He produced from his pocket a ragged teddy-bear, dressed in a small copy of Daphne's clothes and wearing an orange-red wig.

"Is that her real hair?" Marcie asked. "How did you...?"

"I want to change the subject," said Fred.

They arrived back at the house, just in time to see a red sports-car speed away.

"There goes Brad and Judy," said Dace. "They must have figured out the game was up when we rescued Dr. Quest from being the Executioner."

"I rhear rarking," said Scooby.

They went around the house and found a pretty Cocker Spaniel with her leash tied to a stake in the back yard.

"Easy, girl," said Daphne. "Were they in such a hurry to leave that they left you behind? Your collar tag says your name is Nova. Don't worry, girl. We'll take care of you."

Nova licked Daphne's hand. Both Scooby and Scoobert came over to her, and she licked their faces.

"Awww, so cute," said Scooby. "Stay away, Roobert. She's from here."

Scoobert backed off, saying, "Rish I rould rake rou rith re, Rova."

They untied Nova and took her inside.

Dace said, "I think Fred has a point. There are too many of us and we get in each other's way. We need the two teams to be working on different things."

Velma said, "One team could be working on all the cursed treasure material we have while the other takes local cases, like this one in the newspaper where Horbert Feist, the bank manager, ran his car into his bank and the building caught fire. He said a monster in his dreams made him do it."

Frederick asked, "What kind of material have you got on the cursed treasure?"

Velma said, "There are books and pictures in the Darrow family archives. The Darrow family was a mystery-solving group that found one of the pieces of the Planispheric Disk. It lead to their downfall, literally."

"Rownfall?" asked Scoobert.

"Their whole mansion was hit by an earthquake and went underground. We explored it and found old Danny Darrow still alive. After trying to kill us with traps for a while, he gave up and let us have the piece. Pericles stole it from us," said Velma.

"Like, these pieces are dangerous?" asked Norville.

"Maybe, if you don't know what you're doing," said Velma.

"And we know?" Shaggy asked.

"No, we don't," said Velma.

"The archives sound like a good lead," said Daphne. "We should look them over."

They retrieved the chest of archives from its hiding place in Fred's house, and began to look through them. There were old photographs, sketches, and books, most of which were in Spanish.

"Interesting," Dace said. "These books have been stamped in the back with 'Property of the Burlington Library'."

"Like, they've been overdue for decades, right? Zoinks! Think of the fines," said Shaggy.

Velma started looking things up on her laptop. "There's an old Burlington Library in the mountains near town. There may be more books like these there."

"Let's split up," said Fred. "You extra-dimensional guys go to the library while the local gang takes on Feist."

Velma said, "May I go with the Library group? I could swap places with Dace. I've studied this stuff before and I know what to look for."

Dace said, "I was looking forward to going to the Library, but you make a good point."

Velma said, "Fred, I think it would be good for you to come, too. Getting out of town for a bit would help you get over all the things that have happened. Frederick, would it be all right if Fred swaps with you?"

"Sure, I guess," Frederick said.

"Are you sure I need to?" asked Fred.

"Yes!" said the rest of his team in chorus.

* * *

Velma and Fred drove up into the mountains with the rest of the Coolsville team.

"There it is," said Velma. "It's a big place."

"Spooky, too," said Norville.

They knocked on the door and the man who opened it gave them a cold smile. "My name is Dan Fluunk. Welcome to the Burlington Library. I wasn't expecting visitors today."

Fred said, "We just decided to come at the last minute. Is that a problem?"

"Not at all. The Library is open to the public 24/7, 365 days a year. You can stay here for the rest of your lives."

Fluunk showed them around, giving them a tour of the kitchen and bad-tempered cook Don Fong, the gallery with portraits of Oswald P. Burlington and his mystery-solving group (including his orangutan Mr. Peaches), other portraits of mystery-solvers of the past (all four people and one animal), and the book archive itself.

Velma decided to stay up reading books, Daphne retired to her room to take a shower, and Fred headed to his room for an early night.

Norville and Scoobert went back to the kitchen for a snack. A strange-smelling smoke was coming from the kitchen fire. They saw Don Fong chopping meat with a cleaver, and they were about to ask him for some food, when he turned red and morphed into a hideous spider-like monster.

"Zoinks! Run, Scoob!" said Norville.

They ducked out the door and came back in a moment later. Norville had disguised himself as Oswald P. Burlington, and Scoobert was disguised as Mr. Peaches.

"Bad spider-monster Fong," said Norville. "I won't have you disturbing our guests. Go back to your room."

"Oook, ook, ook," said Scoobert. "Rister Reaches!"

They were not sure it would work, but it did. The monster retreated out the door.

"Like, I'm glad the disguise trick worked that time," said Norville.

They heard a cry from the library, and ran into Velma coming the other way.

"I saw Burlington and Mr. Peaches," said Velma. "They came through the library on a ghost train."

"We saw a huge spider monster," said Norville. "Like, we did a disguise trick and it worked."

"It did? Interesting," said Velma. "I think these are hallucinations. Lucky for you, because that means they behave as you expect monsters to behave."

"Like, I wonder if Daphne and Fred are all right?" asked Norville.

"Ret's ro rheck," said Scoobert.

They knocked on the door of Fred's room and when nobody answered they went in and found a surprising sight. Fred and Daphne were asleep, cuddled together on a couch in front of the fire.

"I'd say it was a good thing that Fred and Daphne are getting back together," said Velma, "But..."

"Like, it's your Fred and our Daphne!" said Norville.

"Fred, Daphne, wake up!" Velma called.

They woke with a start, and the two of them looked at each other, and blushed.

"Daphne? I thought you were my Daphne," said Fred.

Daphne said, "And I thought you were my Fred."

"Those were wonderful kisses," said Fred in a dreamy voice.

"Please, let's forget all about them. The other Fred and Daphne would never forgive us," said Daphne.

She turned to the others, "It's not what it looks like. I was attacked by a gorgon-like monster when I got out of the shower and I went to Fred's room for protection. For some reason we weren't thinking clearly and we..."

"Never mind," said Velma. "There's a hallucinogenic chemical in the air, and I think I know what it is."

They began to plot together how to trap the villain who was trying to scare them away.


	11. The New Caretaker

The gang watched as Dan Fluunk was taken away by the police, happy to be going to a warmer place at last.

"I guess we'll have to leave, too," Velma said. "Too bad, I was just getting into the books."

Don Fong came up to Velma and gestured for her to follow. She let him conduct her to a telephone in the kitchen, and she picked up the receiver.

"This is Dean Fenk from Darrow University. My very good friend, Don Fong, told me in his unspecified language that the caretaker has been arrested."

"Yes, that's true. He was trying to frighten guests away so the library would be forced to close," Velma said.

"There's a provision in the will of Oswald P. Burlington that if the library ever has to close then everything goes to Darrow University," said Fenk.

"Oh. I guess you'll send someone to claim the property. We were hoping to do some research here," said Velma.

"I've decided to leave the place open, just as it is. I'll send someone I can spare from the faculty to be the new caretaker," said Fenk.

"Like Professor Hatecraft?" Velma asked hopefully. "We could really use his help."

"I said someone I could spare," said Fenk. "I can't spare him, not while his 'Charu Garu Goshakon' song royalties are still pouring in from Japan. He might have to do interviews for the press."

"Should we leave and come back after the caretaker has settled in?" Velma asked.

"No, it's fine to stay. I trust my dear Fong to keep an eye on things for me," said Fenk. "The new caretaker will arrive this afternoon."

The gang spent the morning going through books in the library. They found one with details of the Benevolent Lodge of Mystery, the mystery-solving group founded by Burlington, which was successful for decades.

"They're a lot like us," said Daphne. "They traveled around the world solving mysteries and having fun."

"Most other groups weren't that lucky," Velma said. "They got caught up with infighting and corruption, and before long they fell victim to terrible fates."

"Rerrible rates?" asked Scoobert.

"Zoinks!" said Norville. "Like, it's lucky we're such good friends."

"Speaking of that, are you two sure you want to keep sitting so close together?" Velma asked Crystal Cove Fred and Coolsville Daphne. "You can blame last night on the terror wood, but if you fall for each other for real it can't end well. You're from different worlds."

Fred said, "Daphne's just helping me practice so I can relate better to my Daphne."

"Is that right?" Velma asked.

"Sure, like when I asked her how my Daphne would react if I kidnapped her, and took her whole bed with her in it out to the beach for a romantic picnic breakfast," said Fred.

"I told him I didn't think it was a good idea," said Daphne. "She might be touched by the expression of feelings, but the kidnapping in her sleep would just make her furious."

"I've got to find some other way, like maybe trapping myself with her overnight in a net, like what happened on our first date," said Fred.

"Just talk to her," Daphne said. "She may be getting lonely now, without Baylor Hotner and without her friends."

A woman barged into the room. "So it's you I have to thank for having to come up to this cold dump in the middle of nowhere."

"Regina Wentworth? You're the caretaker here now?" Velma asked.

"I am, only because that rotten old Dean Fenk made me. What an oldy oldster she is. Now I have to babysit you kids who broke my Todd."

"You mean that cardboard cutout figure from your Dusk van?" Fred said. "We used him as bait in a trap for a villain. It was a good cause, even though the trap didn't quite work."

Regina gave an angry growl and turned away. "I can't stand the sight of you kids, and there's nothing to do around here but look at books, which I hate."

"It's a good quiet place to write," Velma suggested. "You could start a new line of books, since the Dusk series seems to be playing out. Baylor Hotner was even jumping ship on the next movie to try to do a clown role instead; except he ended up in jail."

"Hmmph!" said Regina, and she stalked off.

"Like, she's quite a character," said Norville.

"Rangry rady," said Scoobert.

"Honestly, it couldn't happen to a nicer person," said Velma.

"By the way, what is this 'Dusk' series you were talking about?" Daphne asked.

"A novel series with romantic, sparkly vampires," said Velma.

"Like Silverlight? I loved those," said Daphne.

"Maybe that's your world's equivalent," Velma says. "Our Daphne loved the Dusk books, so you might like them, too."

"I've had enough of vampires for a while," said Daphne. "I was nearly a vampire bride myself."

"A real vampire's bride?" Velma asked skeptically.

"Of course not, but I'm not sure what the fake one was planning to do with me. Maybe murder, maybe kidnapping and brainwashing. Anyway, I would have disappeared," said Daphne with a shudder.

"Don't worry, Daphne. You're safe now," said Fred, putting an arm around her. Daphne let him, leaning back into his arm.

Velma raised her eyebrows at this, but said nothing more since she had already warned them.

"What will we do about Regina Wentworth? Like, she's not going to make it pleasant for us to stay here," said Norville.

"I think we should wrap up here. I'm going to call our guys in town," said Fred.

He called the local Shaggy, "How's it going there with the dream-monster case?"

"Like, all done with that one," said Shaggy. "It was the bank manager all along, projecting dreams on others for revenge for a bad role-playing game years ago. Hot Dog Water helped us build a brain wave scanner and we caught him right away. His brain patterns didn't match the other victims."

"Anything else going on?" Fred asked.

"This, like, creepy curiosity show came into town. Now this monster called the Hodag from the show may be running loose and attacking people. They say it eats dogs, too."

"Reats rogs!" said Scoobert, jumping into Norbert's arms.

"We're coming back there," said Fred. "Research here is pretty much a dead end."

"Are you, like, feeling any better, Fred old pal?" Shaggy asked.

"Much better," Fred said.

They got their stuff together. While they were packing the car, a book smashed out through an upper window and landed at their feet.

"Who threw that?" Velma asked, picking up the book.

"Like, Wentworth, I guess. She sure doesn't like us much, huh Scoob?" asked Norville.

"Rot rat rall," said Scoobert.

"It seems to be a user's manual for the Planispheric Disk," said Velma. "She did us a real favor."

"By accident, probably," said Fred. "Let's go."

From the window above, the ghost of Mr. Peaches watched them take the book he threw. "Mr. Puh-puh-puh-Peaches! Nibiru!"

As Fred was starting up the Mystery Machine, a call came in from Shaggy.

"Guys, you've got to come back right away! The Hodag has got Nova!" Shaggy said.

"Ro no! Rit rill reat Rova!" said Scoobert.

They took off for town as fast as they could.


	12. The Hodag

The (mainly) Coolsville gang followed the directions Shaggy gave them and arrived at a traveling show that was parked on the street: the Traveling Cabinet of Curiosities. The (mainly) Crystal Cove gang was standing outside it, and there was another man, sitting on the curb with his head in his hands.

"What happened, gang?" the Coolsville Daphne asked.

"We were following up a lead on a robbery," Marcie said. "Daphne's sister, Daisy, was attacked and robbed in her home by a monster that looked like an exhibit here, the Hodag of Horror."

"My prime exhibit," explained the man sitting on the curb. "I thought I had it under control, but it's a sneaky monster."

"This is Gene Shepherd, the owner of the show," said Shaggy.

"Was Daisy hurt?" asked Fred (who had been subbing on the Coolsville team for the Burlington Library investigation).

"She's all right," said Dace (who had been subbing on the Crystal Cove team for the Dreamweaver investigation). "She just lost a ruby necklace and one with a bell."

"Like, what did you find out about the monster, and what happened to Nova?" asked Norville.

"I made a sketch of the monster from Daisy's description, and Shaggy and Scooby recognized it from what they thought was a fake stuffed monster in this exhibit, that they saw earlier in the day," said Dace.

"The most, like, cheesy fake monster I've ever seen," said Shaggy.

"My monster isn't fake, and it's definitely not cheesy," said Gene Shepherd.

"We came back here to investigate," said Frederick (the Coolsville Fred, subbing on the local team).

"Rit was rorrible. The ronster came to life," said Scooby.

"It was fast, and it could climb and jump around like nothing human," said Shaggy.

"Rhat rappened to Rova?" asked Scoobert.

"Like, we brought her with us," said Shaggy. "Big mistake."

"The monster noticed her when the little bell on her collar rang. It grabbed her up in its mouth and ran off with her before we could stop it," said Frederick.

"Ro no!" said Scoobert.

"We've got to save her before she gets, like, eaten," said Shaggy.

Scooby and Scoobert both whimpered.

"Is there a plan?" Fred asked Frederick.

"I may have something," said Marcie. "My amateur chemistry skills let me put together a device to detect organic odors. Maybe we can use it to track the Hodag."

She turned it on and said, "I'm picking up a strong cheese odor around here."

Gene Shepherd sprang up. "No! There's no cheese here. Go away and investigate somewhere else."

He went inside the Traveling Cabinet and locked the door. Automatic shutters slammed everything closed.

"Suspicious?" Fred asked Shaggy.

"Very suspicious," said Shaggy. "But he hasn't got Nova."

Norville said, "Scooby and Scoobert, put your noses on the case. Do you smell anything that would lead us to the Hodag?"

The dogs sniffed around outside on the street.

"Rheeses, different kinds," said Scooby. "Ramembert and Swiss."

"Rand rheddar," said Scoobert.

"That reminds me of something," said Frederick. "An invitation was dropped by your house, Fred. It's a welcome home party for your real parents, Brad Chiles and Judy Reeves."

"I'm not going," said Fred.

"I don't blame you," said Frederick. "But it's at the Blake mansion."

"It would be a good opportunity to speak to your Daphne and get her back," said the Coolsville Daphne.

"Rave Rova rirst," said Scoobert.

"Of course. That's really why I mentioned the invitation," said Frederick. "The party features a cheese buffet by the famous 'Something Cheesy This Way Comes'. With all the cheese smells, it may be a good place to start looking for Nova."

They drove to the cheese store and the local gang went in to look around while the out-of-town gang prepared traps. Marcie deployed her odor scanner again, but Scooby was the first to scent Nova. They found her muzzled and caged in a room full of strong-smelling Limburger cheese.

Scooby unlocked the cage and unmuzzled Nova. She jumped up and licked his face, causing her bell to ring again.

A moment later the Hodag of Horror was in the room, going for Nova. Scooby put Nova on his back and ran for the front door.

The Hodag followed, right into a large cage the other gang had constructed around the door. They let Scooby and Nova out the back, and slammed down the front and back cage sides, locking the monster in.

"Now let's see who the Hodag really is," said Frederick.

They unmasked the monster to find the assistant, Roberto. Then they unmasked Roberto to find a bell-trained thieving monkey.

"I just wanted to steal a 500-year-old cheese from Mr. Shepherd," said Mr. Fussbuster. "Then I could have retired to the Netherlands, where they really appreciate cheese. I would have gotten away with it, if weren't for the bells, bells, bells! Roberto is obsessed with them, which is why he took your dog."

Fussbuster and Roberto the monkey were taken away by the police, with the monkey ringing bells madly in the back of the police car.

* * *

The Crystal Cove Mystery Inc., and Nova, attended the welcome-back party that night. They stayed out of sight of Brad and Judy, only approaching Daphne after she had given Judy back her old Mystery Incorporated locket.

"Daphne, how are you doing?" Fred asked.

"Not so well. I tried to visit Baylor Hotner at the jail and he spoke just horribly to me. I miss you... I mean I miss everyone in the gang," said Daphne.

"Would you like to come back?" Fred asked.

"I'd like that," said Daphne.

"And you and me?" Fred asked.

"Let's just be friends," said Daphne a bit too quickly.

"Gee, Daph, this is great. Just like the other Daphne said, all I had to do was talk to you," said Fred.

"You've been sharing private details of our relationship with my copy?" asked Daphne, and her voice had an edge to it. "What else have you been doing?"

"Nothing, except once, under the influence of..." Fred started to say.

"He means once under the influence of terror wood he had a dream about kissing you," said Velma, before Fred could spoil everything.

"Let's take it slow with that kind of thing," said Daphne. "If we ever do again, I mean. Which we won't..."

"Relcome back, Raphne," said Scooby.

"Like yeah, Daphne, we missed you," said Shaggy.

They went out and joined the other gang, waiting in the parking lot.

Marcie asked, "With Daphne back, do you still need me in the gang?"

"Well..." said Fred, "It's always been a five-person team."

"That's completely unfair," said Velma.

"Marcie, you can join our team if you like. We've been more than five before, with Scrappy."

The Crystal Cove team shuddered at the mention of the name.

"If Marcie goes, I'm going too," said Velma. "Dace, how about you? Do you want to stay and hold my place for a while until these guys come to their senses?"

"I don't mind staying," said Dace. "Shaggy and I have been hitting it off pretty well."

"So Dace, want to go out for a pizza with me? I'm starved since the party didn't have a cheese buffet. Like, I'd be starved anyway," said Shaggy. "Scooby and Nova can double-date with us."

"Thanks Shaggy, I'd love to," said Dace.

"Oy, all this cross-universe dating," said Velma to herself.

"We're from the same universe, V," said Marcie. "Like to go out to dinner with me?"

"Sure, Marcie," said Velma. ""How about Chinese?"

"If we make sure the noodles don't have any gluten," said Marcie.

As they were pulling out, the Traveling Cabinet of Curiosities drove up. Shepherd jumped out of the driver's cab and ran up to them with something in a sack.

"The cheese said I had to give it to you," said Shepherd with tears in his eyes. He turned away and ran back to the traveling van, and drove it away.

They pulled out from the sack a large, perfect wheel of cheese. Scooby couldn't resist taking a huge bite.

He drew back saying, "Wow, rhat's sharp."

"Like, let me have some, buddy. I dig sharp cheese," said Shaggy.

"No, I mean rhis is sharp," said Scooby, pulling out a flat piece of metal shaped like a slice of pie with a circle at the tip.

"A piece of the Planispheric Disk!" said Velma.

"Wow, what luck," said Fred. "Someone up there must like us."

"Or somerun down there," said Scooby.

"Rooby Rooby Roo!" said Scoobert nervously.


	13. Separation for Velma and Marcie

The next day, the two Mystery Inc. groups were heading out from Fred's house for more investigation. As before, the Coolsville gang was hitting the books to find out all they could about the Planispheric Disk, this time at the local library. Velma and Marcie were going with them, since Marcie was no longer needed as a replacement Daphne with the local gang.

The Crystal Cove gang was called in to their City Hall office (aka a store-room) to help the Mayor with a haunting at the Pretenso Art Gallery. Dace, the Coolsville Velma, was going with them.

The Coolsville Daphne said, "Now that the local Daphne is back in the gang, I need to use my middle name to tell us apart. Call me Anne."

"Good," said Dace. "Now I'm not the only one using a middle name."

Marcie got a call on her cell phone. She moved away from the others to take it. She went pale as the deep voice on the other end of the phone yelled at her. Without a word she ran outside and started walking down the sideway.

"Marcie, wait!" Velma called, running after her. "What's wrong?"

"It was Mr. E, and he doubts my loyalty. He's going to fire me, and working for him is part of my parole."

"Why is he playing hardball now?" asked Velma.

"It seems he's angry that we had a piece of the Disk just dropped into our laps, in that cheese from Mr. Shepherd. The old Mystery Incorporated got together last night: Mr. E, Fred's parents, and even Cassidy Williams, he says," Marcie said.

"Even Cassidy?" asked Velma.

"I'm not sure. The man lies as easily as he breathes. But Angel Dynamite was working for him and spying on you for a long time," said Marcie.

"I'm not saying we should trust her. She betrayed us. But I thought she had turned against Mr. E," said Velma.

"He says they're all worried that we have two pieces of the Disk and Pericles has two. They don't think we can protect our pieces from him," said Marcie.

"So turn them over to them, when they're possibly in league with Pericles themselves? They'd be a complete team again with him, just like our two teams, but an evil version," said Velma.

"I'm supposed to persuade all of you to hand over the pieces, or steal them," said Marcie.

"And if you don't?" asked Velma.

"I lose my parole and go back to prison," said Marcie.

"For how long?" asked Velma.

"I assaulted and kidnapped several people with the Manticore suit. I could be looking at a life sentence, especially if E uses his influence against me," said Marcie.

"That's not fair! You've reformed," said Velma. "And how can they punish a minor that harshly?"

"Ask Mary Anne Gleardan that, or Flim-Flam," said Marcie.

"The legal system is Crystal Cove is a mess, just like its policing," said Velma.

"I won't turn against you. You've stood by me, even when the gang was ready to kick me out. I... really lo-like you, V," said Marcie.

"I like you too, Marcie," said Velma.

"I'm going to have to go on the run," said Marcie. "I've been working on a fight-or-flight suit just in case, based on re-purposed Manticore technology. Mr E and the police can't stick me back in prison if they can't catch me."

"I wish you didn't have to go," said Velma.

"You could come with me," said Marcie.

"Marcie, I can't. I have family, friends, and mysteries to solve here," said Velma.

"Then this is goodbye, V," said Marcie. "But stay in touch. This card has my encrypted email site."

She handed Velma the card, and when Velma took it she gave her a fierce hug.

"Wow, you're strong, Marcie," said Velma.

"Thanks, V, I have to be now," said Marcie. She let go of the hug and walked away.

* * *

Velma returned to the others and told them what had happened.

"Still want to swap places?" asked Dace. "You only did it to keep Marcie company, right?"

"I still want to work on the Disk research. That will take my mind off things," said Velma.

"All right, I'll stick with this group for now, and with Shaggy," said Dace.

* * *

They regrouped later, around lunch time.

"How goes the investigation?" asked Frederick.

"Not good," said Dace. "We went to Arrtwerks, the working studio for Randy Warsaw, and tried to fit in. We didn't."

"Randy Warsaw?" asked Norville. "Like, who's he?"

"The artist whose statue, 'Trash', came to life last night and attacked his emo rock band singer, and turned her into a golden statue."

"Jinkies," said Velma. "And what happened at the studio?"

"Warsaw saw us, and tried to make us over into his artistic puppets," said Dace.

"I was going to go shirtless and be called Beef," said Fred.

"Like, I was going to be a werker on a giant cheese sculpture," said Shaggy.

"I ras roing to be his replacement emo ringer," said Scooby, "And wear a long blonde rig, and be called Phreako. "

"Zoinks! Like the Boo Brothers, Freako, Shrieko, and Meako?" asked Norville.

"No, Phreako, Floppo, and Dot," said Shaggy. "Like, all emo."

"What about you, Daphne? Did you get a part?" Frederick asked.

"He thought I was too boring, and told me to begone," said Daphne. "But them Dace spoiled everything, which serves him right."

"He told me I was mousy, alien, and beautiful, and that I should be his muse. Then he tried to take my glasses and smash them. Nobody touches the glasses," said Dace.

"Didn't you feel flattered by the attention?" Velma asked. "I'm sure I would have been."

"I am not a muse," said Dace.

"After she slugged him, he got mad and threw the lot of us out of the gallery," said Fred. "We saw a suspicious-looking character leave at the same time, and we caught him, but he was only selling forged copies of Warsaw's work, so we let him go."

"Couldn't he have been the monster?" asked Velma.

"No, because while we were following him the monster attacked again at the studio and turned another person into a statue, this time his old muse, Clio," said Fred.

"Then it ran out and found the forger, Werker One, and turned him into a statue too," said Daphne.

"Not doing too well on this mystery, are you?" asked Anne.

"Just wait," said Fred. "We're going back to the gallery tonight for another big showing. And we'll be ready with a trap."


	14. For Art's Sake

Mayor Janet Nettles, in a long blonde wig, sang at the Pretenso Gallery, while her friend, Sheriff Bronson Stone, juggled fish with no shirt on and with a fish on his head.

The art-loving Sheriff had taken Janet to see the Arrtwerks studio of Randy Warsaw, and he had roped them into doing this for the sake of Art, after his attempt to use Mystery Incorporated members ended in failure (and Dace punching him when he tried to break her glasses).

_"What will you do when you see a caribou? Better go find the hunters."_

Junk, the sculpture made of scrap metal, pulled itself together and roared as it rolled across the room toward Warsaw.

"It's time for my masterpiece," said Warsaw, spreading both arms to welcome the attack.

"Now gang!" said Fred, watching from the sidelines.

Janet Nettles, who had been briefed beforehand on the plan, threw her wig to catch around the monster's legs. Daphne threw a picture frame to catch its arms. Fred rode a cow (one that Stone had posed on earlier) into the sculpture to knock it apart.

Their moment of triumph was short-lived, as the monster began to pull itself back together. Then Velma stepped from the sidelines and clicked a remote-control device. Junk fell back onto the floor in a heap of parts.

"This remote-control jammer, built from a design that Marcie emailed me, should keep the monster helpless," Velma said.

"Now let's see who the monster really is," said Fred, pulling off the TV "head" and revealing a secret compartment containing the villain.

"Butch Firbanks?" the gang said in chorus.

"You got me," said Firbanks, "But don't expect my introspective personality to register guilt."

"As I suspected," said Velma. "He used to be a polka accordian player in Baveria until Mr. Warsaw recruited him for his emo/eco band. He paralyzed his victims with a rare strain of Baverian yeast."

"I wanted revenge because he changed everything about me," said Firbanks. "I would have gotten away with it if it weren't for you meddling polka haters."

Sheriff Stone and the Mayor took the culprit away.

"Mystery Incorporated, you saved Modern Art from the clutches of the bourgeoisie. There's only one thing left to say: you bore me horribly. Get out, shoo, shoo," said Warsaw.

"Some people don't appreciate it when you save the day," said Fred as they drove away.

"Tomorrow I'll go back to Planespheric Disk research and let Dace take my place," said Velma. "She'll help you make short work of the next case."

Dace did, by insisting on going for the obvious suspect in the Graveyard Ghoul case while the others were distracted by Swedish least-likely-suspects who served meatballs and chocolate.

* * *

The researchers were waylaid on the way to the library by Mr. E.

"I need those Pieces of the Disk," he told them. "The stakes are higher than ever. Velma, won't you tell the others to join forces with me?"

"I don't know why I ever trusted you. After the way you threatened and manipulated Marcie, I know I never will again," said Velma.

They walked on.

"Good call, Velma," said Anne, the Coolsville Daphne. "I thought I spotted a bird lurking in the tree behind him. It looked like a large purple parrot."

"Professor Pericles," said Velma. "I knew it. The old Mystery Incorporated is joining forces again. Now that we have as many Disk pieces as they do we've become a serious threat."

"Do you think even your old friend Cassidy Williams is on their side?" asked Anne.

Velma said, "The radio station has never re-opened after the Executioner attack. There's been no word from her at all. She's either on their side or they forced her into silence for good."

Velma and Anne hung back from the others and talked together quietly.

"Speaking of silence," said Velma quietly, "Are you ever going to tell Frederick, your Fred, how you feel about him?"

"Who said I have feelings for Frederick? Did I say that?" asked Anne.

"You kissed our Fred, thinking he was Frederick, so of course you do," said Velma.

"All right, I admit I do, but I don't know if my Fred has feelings for me. I'm afraid to talk to him. What if he doesn't? I'll be crushed," said Anne.

"You've let all these years go by just for that?" asked Velma.

"We came so close, in a television talent contest recently. We sang a love duet and even kissed, but for all I know Fred just did it for the show."

"Seriously pathetic, Anne. But why don't you take your cue from our Fred and Daphne? I'm sure they're going to reconcile soon. They're your counterparts, so if they admit they care for each other then you should trust that."

"I'm not so sure. I'll keep watching. If they reconcile, then I'll speak to Fred," said Anne.

"Good for you," said Velma.

"How about you?" asked Anne. "Any thought of reconciling with Shaggy?"

"I'm completely over him," said Velma. "Anyway, right now I'm keeping out of the way to give Dace a chance. She has a better shot than I did of avoiding dog issues since Scooby's completely taken up with Nova."

"No jealousy at all?" Anne asked.

"Not really. Someone else has captured my interest, even though it's hopeless. I may never see this person again face to face," said Velma.

"You mean...?" asked Anne.

"Marcie. She's on the run from Mr. E," said Velma.

"Maybe when we clear all of this up Mr. E and his cohorts will be behind bars," said Anne.

"So will Marcie, probably. She violated her parole by running. Looks like I'm destined to be alone," said Velma.

"I hope you can find a way," said Anne.

"And I hope that you can," said Velma.


	15. Mount Diabla

The gangs met the next day at Fred's house to plan.

"Daphne is going to rest up at home today," Fred told everyone. "She had a strong allergic reaction to the chocolate she ate when we investigated the Bjorklunds."

"Like, an addictive reaction," said Shaggy.

"Yeah, raddictive," said Scooby.

"I don't get it," said Shaggy. "I could eat chocolate all day and it would never bother me."

"You could eat anything all day," said Velma.

"Leave Shaggy alone and stick to the point. " said Dace (the Coolsville Velma). "What did you find out?"

"We found the memoirs of Stella Houston and Sissy Hawgshank," said Velma.

"Wait, I know those names" said Anne (the Coolsville Daphne). "Were they cowgirls?"

"Yes, two members of a mystery-solving gang of cowgirls," said Velma. "How did you know?"

"We had a mystery once where two people dressed up as their ghosts to scare a dude ranch out of business," said Anne.

"Was it a major case?" Fred asked. "With lots of traps?"

"It was just a little case. No traps," said Frederick (the Coolsville Fred). "Nobody would make a movie of it or anything. It was written up in a few pages for a comic book."

"Wow, people make movies and comic books about you?" Velma asked. "I'm jealous."

"Don't be," said Anne. "The movies have been miserable. The first was supposed to be a treatment of how we got back together to investigate some horrific monsters on Moonscar Island. But by the time Hollywood got done with it, it had become a haunted island amusement park."

"That's too bad," said Velma. "That's Hollywood."

"Well, Sarah Michelle Gellar did a decent job of portraying me, given the script she had to work with," Anne said. "I wish she could have enacted me again when there was a plot to frame us with evil doubles, instead of that Hollywood extra, Grey DeLisle."

"Off topic again," said Dace. "What did you find out about the cowgirls, Velma?"

"They found a conquistador's helmet near the base of Mount Diabla," said Velma. "They found it when they were watering their talking pet bull, Tiny. Scooby, Tiny was your counterpart in their gang."

"Ri'm no bull," said Scooby.

"There have been several groups around here, of four people solving mysteries, each with a talking animal," said Velma.

"That just proves my point," said Fred. "Young people have always liked solving mysteries and making traps."

"Not really, Fred," said Velma. "But it's a connection we should follow up. That helmet could be a clue to finding the treasure the conquistadors supposedly buried near Crystal Cove.".

"Where is the helmet now?" asked Shaggy. "Like, was it handed on to the descendants of the cowgirls?"

"They hid it in the rocks near where they found it. They thought it was cursed because they had nightmares that night."

Dace said, "It was a more superstitious time. Of course we don't believe in curses today."

"You don't, but I'm keeping an open mind," said Norville.

Velma said, "They intended to come back for it, but tragedy struck. Three of them died in an explosion the next day."

"Zoinks! My open mind is convinced – that we should stay far away from that c-cursed helmet," said Norville.

"Re roo!" said Scoobert (the Coolsville Scooby).

"I think we should go to Mount Diabla and investigate," said Fred. "But you can stay back, Norville. We only need one of each of us, so we don't confuse people. I think it should be all locals, since it's our city's secrets and treasure."

"I could stand in for Daphne, since she's sick," Anne said.

"You're welcome to, Daph – I mean Anne," said Fred.

"You'd be welcome to take my place too, Norville," said Shaggy.

"Like, no thanks, buddy. This one is all yours," said Norville.

* * *

"Here we are, gang. Scorpion Wells," said Fred. "Let's see if they know about the helmet."

"Like, are you sure this is a town?" asked Shaggy. "It looks a place like where old trailers come to die."

The town had an eerie, run-down atmosphere. Strings of lights trailing down from a pole were the only street-lamps. Tanks of propane were everywhere, and there was a huge stack of old tires near an outdoor fire pit. They stopped in front of an old Quonset hut with a sign reading: "City Hall – Dangerously Explosive Gas Emporium."

There was a sound behind them, and they turned to find weirdly muffled figures coming their way from every direction. They were a bit intimidated until one of them pulled off her muffler, revealing a weatherbeaten but friendly face. The other townsfolk also unmasked, showing their smiling, monstrous faces.

"Howdy, strangers! Welcome to Scorpion Wells. I'm Granny Snaggletooth, and here's Lobster Man, Bucket-Head Brenda, and, uh... the hideous Ugly Jimmy."

Ugly Jimmy unmasked, revealing a stunningly handsome face. Anne gasped in admiration.

"He don't quite fit in round here, being so deformed and all," said Granny Snaggletooth, as Jimmy hung his head in shame.

Anne was tempted to go over and flirt with Jimmy, but she realized it might get back to her Frederick, so she refrained.

"Thanks, strange and kindly desert folks," said Fred. "We've investigating a mystery and we'd like to ask a few questions, if you don't mind."

"Don't mind at all, as long as this tall drink 'o water is doin' the askin'," said Granny Snaggletooth, grabbing Shaggy by the arm. "What's your name, handsome?"

"Like... S-Shaggy," said Shaggy, quivering.

Ugly Jimmy came forward, "What would you like to know?"

"We're looking for something that was lost a long time ago near Mount Diabla," said Velma.

Granny Snaggletooth's face turned angry and she pushed Shaggy away. "What you want to go messin' around on that mountain for?"

She glared at them. "We're having a barbeque tonight. Stay and eat, and we'll tell you all about the mountain, and why you should forget you ever heard of it."

The "barbeque" was lizards roasted on a stick over a smelly bonfire of old tires. The gang didn't have much appetite.

"Now that we're all friends, what can you tell us about Mount Diabla?" asked Velma.

"It's a dark, evil place," said Granny Snaggletooth.

"Invisible spirits guard the mountain from all trespassers," said Ugly Jimmy. "Nobody goes up there."

There was a sudden shriek nearby, and an evil laugh.

"The invisible spirits!" said Jimmy.

"Ro no!" said Scooby, jumping into Shaggy's arms.

Trailers started tipping over by themselves, and the shrieks were heading their way. The fire exploded, sending burning tires rolling in every direction.

"Leave this place or suffer for eternity!" called one invisible spirit.

The water tower fell, splashing out the fire and drenching everyone.

"You brought the wrath of the spirits on us," said Granny Snaggletooth in fury. "Now leave, before things get ugly!"

As the gang drove away, Anne said, "Those poor people!"

"They can't help it," said a voice from the back of the van. "Their fear of the spirits is very reasonable."

Fred slammed on the brakes, and Ugly Jimmy tumbled forward.

Anne gave another sigh of attraction.

"Ugly Jimmy? What are you doing here?" asked Velma.

"I want to help you solve the mystery. I will guide you up Mount Diabla," said Jimmy.

"Why?" asked Fred.

"I'm sick of living in fear," said Jimmy. "Those invisible demons need to be stopped. There's already enough fear in town thanks to what people can see, my hideously deformed face!"

"About that face, you really need to know..." Anne began to say.

"We're happy to accept your help," said Fred abruptly.

"But first we need to check on one thing. Who do we know who has access to the technology of invisibility?" asked Velma.

"Alice May?" asked Shaggy. "When she was the Obliteratrix?"

"Yes, and where did she get it from?" asked Velma.

Nobody responded.

"Quest Industries, working for Destroido. Dr. Quest is our friend now, and he might have some tips on how to defeat the monsters," said Velma.

* * *

At Quest Industries, Dr. Quest introduced his family.

"These is my son Johnny, and my adopted son Hadji," he told them. "Boys, these are my friends from Mystery Incorporated: Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy, and Scooby-Doo."

"Pleased to meet you, Johnny and Hadji," said Daphne/Anne.

"Hi," said Johnny.

"Hello," said Hadji more formally.

"If you're going on a dangerous mission I'd like to come along," said Johnny. "Things have been slow around here lately."

"I'm sure your dad wouldn't let us take you anywhere dangerous," said Fred.

"You'd be surprised," said Johnny.

"Given who I work for now, I can't offer you so much help as sending my son along," said Dr. Quest. "But I can answer a few questions for you."

"How do the invisibility suits work, like the one you gave the Obliteratrix? Would it work to throw paint on someone using it?" Velma asked.

"It creates a field that warps light around the suit," said Dr. Quest. "So that from every direction the light path leads to what is behind the person, thus making them completely invisible. Anything you threw onto the suit would be behind the field and invisible too."

"Like, can they see?" Shaggy asked.

"Yes, the suit captures and amplifies the light that would have reached their eyes and transmits it. The dark spots this creates are virtually undetectable."

"Hmm, light can pass, but nothing solid," said Anne.

"Okay, I have a plan," said Fred. "Let's get up to Mount Diabla. We've left Ugly Jimmy waiting in the car long enough."

* * *

From under the deck of the Spanish galleon high in the mountains, they heard voices.

"Once we made sure the locals wouldn't bother us, this mission has been easy," said one female voice.

"It was a piece of pie to defeat the traps," said a male voice.

"A piece of cake, Brad," said the first voice.

"Thank you, Judy, a piece of cake," said the second voice.

The instant they came on deck, a spray of dust and smoke filled the air, making them cough.

"Get them," said Fred. "Light can bend around them, but the smoke can't get in. Aim for the holes in the smoke!"

Scooby leaped for an outstretched hand and grabbed the triangle-shaped hole in Brad's hand in his mouth.

"He got the Disk piece!" Brad said. "Plan D, Judy."

Brad dove for the first person he saw, Ugly Jimmy. His charge knocked Jimmy off the deck and he rolled down the mountain.

Judy grabbed Anne from behind. "Give us the piece now or I'll break her neck."

"Real Mom and Dad," said Fred. "You're even more evil than my fake dad. Did you ever really care about me?"

"Not particularly," said Brad.

"That's why we tricked Jones into kidnapping you," said Judy. "Now, hand over the piece."

Anne flipped Judy over her back, then executed a flying martial kick on the smoky outline of Brad.

"How did Daphne learn to fight all of a sudden?" Brad asked with a groan.

"This is the other Daphne, and I've competed in martial arts at the international level, or I would have if the tournament hadn't been a fake," said Anne.

"Strategic retreat, Brad," said Judy. "We can't win this one."

Both invisible figures vaulted out of the smoke field and disappeared.

"Good one, gang," said Fred. "We didn't catch them, but we got the piece."

"We'd better go down the mountain and see how Jimmy is doing," said Anne.

* * *

They found Jimmy among his people at the bottom of the mountain. He was battered from his fall and his face was ruined, a mass of bruises and scars.

"They're calling me Handsome Jimmy now!" said Jimmy.

"That's right," said Bucket-Head Brenda, putting an arm around him.

"I think I'm going to hork," said Anne.

"You didn't really want him," said Velma quietly.

"I know, I just don't like to see beauty get ruined," said Anne.

"We never found the conquistador's helmet we were looking for, but the mission is still a success," said Fred.

"Is that what you were looking for?" asked Handsome Jimmy. "I found one of those years ago. You're welcome to it, in gratitude for what you've done for me."

He went into his trailer and came back with the helmet.

Velma looked it over. "Segundo llave. Just like we thought."

"Thank you, Jimmy and everyone. We need to get back to town now," said Anne.

"Why don't you stay with me a while, handsome? They can pick you up later when I'm done with you," said Granny Snaggletooth, reaching for Shaggy.

"Zoinks! N-no thanks, pressing business at home. I think I left the coffee pot on," said Shaggy.

They ran for the Mystery Machine, with Scooby calling his catch phrase, "Scooby Dooby Dooo!"


	16. The Brothers Grim

The gang walked through the hallway at Crystal Cove High School (just the gang that belonged there – the rest were at the Jones mansion).

"I told you, Fred, I'm not ready to go on a date with you yet," said Daphne. "I'm still getting over how Baylor used me and betrayed me."

"Not a real date, just practice," said Fred. "Look at Brenda and Dylan over there. They practice a lot and they're dating experts."

Brenda was kissing a brown-haired guy in the hall, but when she turned around she revealed the guy was not Dylan.

"Gary?" said Fred.

"Brenda, what happened to Dylan?" asked Daphne.

Brenda said, "Dylan ran off and left me in danger. We're through."

Gary said, "This huge pilgrim dude was in Lover's Lane last night, judging and attacking people with a giant hammer. I was jogging by with my soccer ball, so I took him out, two kicks: me kicking the ball and me kicking the ball again."

"He was so brave. I can't believe I wasted my time with a boy like Dylan when I could have been with a man like Gary," said Brenda.

"Like, did this Pilgrim guy say anything?" asked Shaggy.

"He said, 'All shall be judged and all shall be punished by Hebediah Grim!'" Brenda said.

"Rebediah Rim," said Scooby-Doo with a shudder.

* * *

Later, at the Jones home, the two gangs discussed the case.

"Poor Brenda and Dylan," said Daphne. "Monsters seem to attack them all the time. So danger-prone."

"Like you, Daphne, I mean Anne," said Dace (the Coolsville Velma).

"That's different," said Anne. "Sure, I've been kidnapped a few dozen times, but I was actively investigating criminal cases when it happened. It sounds like Brenda and Dylan have been attacked three times as innocent bystanders."

Fred said, "They ended up in intensive care after the Manticore attack."

Velma said, "Marcie didn't mean to hurt anyone. She told me she locked them up in a secret room of the haunted temple at Creepy Spooky Terror Land. She left them food and bottled water, but for some reason they didn't drink."

Daphne asked, "Was it Trickell's Trickquid water?"

Velma said, "I'm not sure. I doubt it."

Daphne said, "That explains it. Brenda won't drink anything else because she's afraid regular water will make her fat. She wouldn't have let Dylan drink any either."

"Like, we're dying of thirst and hunger too," said Shaggy. "Where are the snacks?"

"Yeah! We need racks," said Scooby.

"Oh, I forgot about snacks," said Fred. "Can't you skip them this time?"

"No way!" said Shaggy and Scooby together.

"Don't worry," said Frederick, the other Fred. "We've been at home with plenty of free time, so Norville and Scoobert went into the kitchen and made some snacks for our meeting."

"That was nice of them," said Daphne.

"Then we, like, ate them all," said Norville.

"Rum, rum," said Scoobert.

"I'm starting to not like you, other me," said Shaggy. "This town isn't big enough for both of our appetites."

"Same here," said Scooby to Scoobert.

The two pairs faced off, glaring at each other.

"Don't worry, I'll order out for pizza," said Daphne.

That seemed to settle things down for the moment. Fred's cellphone gave a belch.

"That means I've got a new text message. Let me check," said Fred. He read it and scowled. "My evil real Mom and Dad are offering to help us catch Hebediah Grim. They say they know the perfect trap."

"Trap is right," said Shaggy. "Their trap, for us."

"Some nerve, after what they did at Scorpion Wells," said Velma.

Fred texted back a shouting reply, "WE'LL DO IT OURSELVES!"

They agreed that the Crystal Cove Mystery Inc. would go up to Lovers Lane, while the Coolsville Mystery Inc. went to the library to try to track down historical information about Hebediah Grim.

* * *

When the Crystal Cove gang went up to Lover's Lane that evening, they found Sheriff Bronson Stone and Mayor Janet Nettles parked there in a squad car.

"Hi Mayor Nettles, Sheriff Stone. What are you doing here? Are you on a date?" asked Velma, noticing the candles and wine glasses on the dashboard.

"This is a stakeout, nothing to see here," said Sheriff Stone loudly.

"Hey, how are we supposed to make incredibly bad, stupid decisions that will wreck the rest of our lives over here, with all that noise?" called a young man in an adjacent car, with a date Daphne recognized as Cheryl Shmendrick.

"Quiet, longhair!" said the Sheriff.

Perhaps he would have said more if not for a gigantic hammer smashing into the side of his car, jamming the driver's side door. Hebediah Grim had struck again.

"For your painted faces, and clothes that rise above the ankles, and fall below the neck, you three womenfolk shall be judged," said Grim.

"Three? What about me?" asked Velma.

"You shall be spared. You are a model of purity: plain, wholesome and untempting," said Grim.

Cheryl's date laughed at this, drawing a hammer attack on his car.

"Quick, save the Mayor," said Stone to Fred and Velma.

They complied, getting Janet Nettles out of the passenger side and into the Mystery Machine. Daphne was left in harm's way, but she dodged Grim's hammer blows and jumped into the car.

Grim was turning to attack Cheryl when a soccer ball hit him in the face and knocked him down. It was Gary again; he scooped up Cheryl in his arms.

The cars at the scene took off. The Mystery Machine nearly went over a steep cliff, but Fred deployed the emergency grappling hooks that Frederick had helped him install and the car was halted in time.

"Piece of cake," said Fred. "Everyone all right?"

He looked back into the van and saw Gary there, holding Cheryl.

"I just happened to be jogging by in time to stop that crazy judge again," said Gary. "One kick this time."

"My hero," said Cheryl.

* * *

Back at the house, Velma said, "Gary showing up twice is too much of a coincidence."

"I agree. He has to be involved," said Daphne.

Fred said, "He can't be Grim himself, but it could be his best friend, Ethan."

"There's another possible suspect we found by research at the library," Dace said. "There was a school play last year called 'The Scorning' with a character just like Hebediah Grim."

"We checked out a Drama Club yearbook," said Anne. "Here's a picture of Grim."

"Like, the costume is identical," said Shaggy. "Someone must have stolen it from the Drama Club."

"The one with the most access would be the student who played the judge, Doogle McGuiness. Or his understudy, who had a second matching costume," said Dace. "But Doogle was reported to be so into the role that he was acting crazy outside the play."

"I think we need a three-way split-up," said Fred. "Both Shaggys and Scoobys will watch Doogle, the rest of the local gang will watch Ethan, and the out-of-town gang will watch Gary."

"Gary too?" asked Scooby-Doo.

"The monster tends to show up where he does, so if we're wrong about the suspects we'll still get a shot at him," said Daphne.

"Like, it won't happen that way," said Shaggy. "With me, the other me, Scoob, and the other Scoob all together, it's twice as likely that the monster will show up where we are and chase us."

"Rive rimes as rikely," said Scoobert.

"I doubt that," said Velma. "Doogle seems like a long shot."

"Like, I agree with Shaggy, and I want six Scooby Snacks in advance, six for each of us," said Norville.

"I don't know if they have Scooby Snacks in this world," said Dace. "Scooby's family isn't famous here, like it was in Coolsville where they created the brand."

"Rite your tongue, Of rourse they do," said Scooby.

* * *

The next day, the groups set off on their missions. Nothing suspicious happened during the school day, and they all had long, boring vigils.

The Scooby group followed Doogle home at nightfall after his Drama Club meeting. They sneaked close to a window where Doogle sat at a table brightly lit with makeup lighting.

Doogle answered a call on his cell phone, and said, "Yes, I have another costumed job tonight. It's from that odd bird from the Crystal Cove Animal Asylum for the Criminally Insane. Don't worry, I'll knock 'em dead. All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others. "

The four investigators rushed away from the window and hid in the bushes.

"D-did you hear that, Scoob?" asked Shaggy. "Like, he has orders from Professor Pericles!"

"Re's roing to rock us read!" said Scoobert.

"Like, we've got to call the others for help before he gets his monster suit on," said Norbert, fumbling for his cell phone. "Wait, mine's no good here. Use yours!"

"Too late!" said a grim voice behind them. "Eavesdroppers shall be judged!"

It was Hebediah Grim. He smashed at them with his gigantic hammer, uprooting a bush and sending it flying. They all ran around the house, with Grim giving chase.

"Like, please don't judge us," said Shaggy. "We're plain and untempting!"

As they rounded the corner of the house into the backyard, Grim stepped into a net and was lifted up into the air. His hammer fell to the ground. So did a school yearbook.

"Good thing we were following Gary," said Frederick, pulling off Grim's mask. "I'm not sure why he came here, though."

"I know," said Dace. "He came to plant this yearbook to throw suspicion on Doogle."

She opened the pages, and showed that the Grim victims were marked as "hot."

"He attacked girls and then protected them, to get dates," Dace said.

"But what was Doogle talking about? Like, he's following orders from someone from the Animal Asylum for the Criminally Insane," said Shaggy.

"He'd doing a one-man production of Animal Farm there tonight, that's all," said Dace.

"But how did you manage to attack as Grim when you were there as yourself?" Anne asked Gary.

"You don't know? Good. You have no case," said Gary. "How'd I attack myself, huh? Am I a wizard too? Ooh, wizard magic! Shalakazoo!"

Behind them came a grim voice. "False accusers shall be judged!"

The Coolsville gang ran from the second Hebediah Grim, around the next corner of the house. There a second net, set up by the Crystal Cove gang, caught the second monster.

"Just as we thought," said Velma. "Gary and Ethan were working together, giving each other alibis and each setting the other one up to be the hero."

"Because we didn't trust each other," said Ethan. "Tag-teaming was the only way."

"Who wants to judge me now? Who?" asked Velma. "Yeah! In your face!"

"You're scaring me, Relma," said Scooby-Doo.

Ethan looked at all the duplicate gang members around him. "But... but... how can all of you be in two places at once?"

"Wizard magic, dude," said Norville.

"Scooby-Dooby-Doooo!" the two dogs cried out in unison.


	17. Ski Break

"After everything we've been through, gang, this little ski vacation is just the thing," said Fred.

"Like, Scoob and I aren't as crazy about hitting the slopes as we are about hitting the all-you-can-eat fondu bar," said Shaggy.

"Scooby-Dooby-Doo!"

Velma said, "Not too fast, Fred, we don't want to leave the other gang and the other Mystery Machine behind."

"I recognize this turn," Fred said. "The right fork leads to the Burlington Library. Remember, Velma? You and I were up here with the other guys and we solved a mystery."

Fred blushed, remembering an embarrassing incident there he hadn't told his other friends about. He and the Coolsville Daphne had kissed under the influence of a hallucination caused by terror wood smoke.

"Like, no need to go to the library if the mystery there is already solved," said Shaggy. "Our karmic duty is done."

Daphne said, "According to the other gang, there's a big chance we'll run into another mystery anywhere we go. That's what happens to them all the time."

"I hope not," said Velma. "We deserve a real vacation."

There was a slight shift in the snow on the slope above them, but no snow fell on the road.

In the other car, Frederick followed. They all made it to the Weathering Heights Ski Resort without incident.

"They have small two-bed rooms in the ski lodge," said Daphne. "To keep things simple, each person will room with their other-dimensional counterpart: Anne with me, Fred with Frederick, Velma with Dace, and Shaggy with Norville."

"Rhat about me?" asked Scooby-Doo.

"Rand re?" asked Scoobert.

"Like, both Scoobs with both of us, of course," said Shaggy.

As they were lining up to get room keys, a heavyset man with a black beard pushed in front of them. He was accompanied by two muscular bodyguards.

"Mr. E?" the gangs exclaimed in unison.

"What are you doing here?" Fred asked.

"It's a free country," said Mr. E. "But since you're here, I want to stress how important it is that your gang cooperate with me before someone gets hurt."

"Like, it's not happening, E," said Shaggy.

"If that was a threat, we don't have the disk pieces on us," said Fred.

"Too bad; I brought mine. If we put them together, secrets could be revealed that would save Crystal Cove," said E.

"Ror restroy it," said Scooby.

"Don't even think about trying to break into my room to try to get my disk pieces," said E. "My bodyguards, Fuhrman and Huskie, will be on high alert."

"As if we would stoop to stealing from you," said Velma.

Mr. E and his entourage stomped off, the bodyguards loaded with his baggage.

After everyone settled into rooms, everyone except the Shaggys and Scoobys went outside wearing skis. The latter four came out without skis, sniffing the air hungrily.

"Like, let us at that all-you-can-eat fondu bar," said Norville.

"Rondo rar!" echoed Scoobert.

"That's at the restaurant at the top of the ski hill," said Fredrick. "We have to ride the lift up there."

"Ret's go!" said Scooby.

The ski lift seated two people at a time. The two Great Danes raced ahead and jumped on the first available seat, cutting ahead of the others. Dace and Shaggy ended up sharing the next lift seat.

Halfway up the slope, the lift got stuck, stranding everyone high above the slope for a few minutes.

"Zoinks! I don't like heights," said Shaggy.

"It's a chance to talk alone for a few minutes," said Dace.

"Like sure, I guess," said Shaggy.

"You're so much like the Shaggy of my group on the outside," said Dace. "I wonder how much like him you are as a person."

"Like, pretty alike," said Shaggy.

"Our Shaggy and Daphne were an item for a while, before the whole gang got back together. Especially during the 'Thirteen Ghosts' investigation, but then they broke up. Did anything like that happen with you?"

Shaggy groaned. "We got mixed up in a 'Thirteen Ghosts' case last summer, when Fred was off at trap camp and Velma was at computer camp. Daphne and I were dupes who got doped, I mean, dopes who got duped, by a Vincent Van Ghoul impersonator and his kid con-artist sidekick, Flim-Flam. We were, like, flim-flammed, for real."

"And you and Daphne got together?" asked Dace.

"Who told you that?" asked Shaggy. "If it ever gets back to Fred, Daphne will kill me. I mean, like, nothing happened."

"Your secret's safe with me," said Dace. "I'm glad you don't kiss and tell, or at least try not to."

"It's all totally over, and so's anything between Velma and me," said Shaggy. "No reason to worry."

"I'm not, only our Shaggy used to be more of a ladies' man," said Dace. "There was Googie, a sort of cheerleader racing groupie. They were over when he stopped auto-racing."

"Like, that never happened to me," said Shaggy.

"And there was Mei Ling from Hong Kong, more of a long-distance relationship," said Dace.

"Mai Le? Like, she only got close to me to get a chance to steal a ruby," said Shaggy.

"Different person," said Dace. "I've fallen for my share of crooks, too. Like Ben Ravencroft. And I guess Winsor counts, too. I've decided I'm not going to wait for him to get out of prison - I can date other people."

"Like me?" Shaggy asked.

"That's what I was talking about," said Dace. "Even though I'll have to go back to my own world eventually."

"We'll, like, play it as it goes," said Shaggy. He put an arm around her as the lift resumed its climb to the top.

After a fondu dinner, Shaggy tried to take the ski lift down and found the lift had closed.

"Don't worry, Shaggy," said Dace. "You and Scooby can ride down on my back while I ski down."

"Like, what?" said Shaggy.

"For real?" asked Scooby.

"I have powerful upper body strength, remember? Strong legs, too," said Dace. "I can carry the whole gang and run when I have to. You'll be a light load for me."

The balance part was a little tricky, and both Shaggy and Scooby yelled all the way down, but they made it. Everyone settled down for the night in rooms shared with their counterparts.

At about one in the morning, Fred shouted, "I just got a call from Cassidy Williams. She's in trouble back in town. Come on, gang!"

The others sleepily responded, and the local Mystery Machine headed off on the road back to town.

The others were headed back to bed when Shaggy came out of his room. "Like, what's up, gang? Did someone say Cassidy Williams was in trouble?"

"Shaggy?" asked Dace. "Then it must have been Norville who went back to town with the rest of your gang. Which Scooby went?"

"Scooby-Dooby-Doo!" said Scoobert.

"No problem, as long as they have one Shaggy and one Scooby," said Shaggy. "I'm heading back to bed."

"Velma left, so I'm alone in my room," said Dace. "I have a thermos of cocoa and marshmallows and nobody to share them with," said Dace. "Would you like to come over for a while?"

"Like, sure," said Shaggy with a wide grin.

* * *

The others had not returned by the next morning. Dace and Shaggy joined the others at breakfast, looking very relaxed.

There was a shout from the lobby, "I want Mystery Incorporated arrested! They attacked my men and broke into my room!"

They ran out to find Mr. E, accompanied by two scratched-up looking guards.

"What happened, E?" Frederick asked.

"You know what happened! Someone in a bear-monster costume broke into my room last night. And the disk pieces are missing!"


	18. Midnight Zone

While the old Mystery Incorporated remained at the ski lodge, the new gang responded to a distress call from Crystal Cove.

"I hope this call from Cassidy Williams isn't just a ruse to split us up," said Fred.

"Like, who is Cassidy Williams again?" asked Norville.

"Wait. You're not our Shaggy?" asked Daphne.

"Oops, I guess your Shaggy was zonked out and I was half asleep when you tried to wake us up. I just jumped in the Mystery Machine with you. Do you want to, like, take me back?" asked Norville.

"No time," said Velma. "You'll do. You're exactly like our Shaggy."

"Like, even better," said Norville. "I've got years more experience."

"Ror the same year of rexperience over and over," said Scooby-Doo.

"You've got a point there, Scoob," said Norville. "But back to the original point. You don't trust Cassidy?"

"She lied to us from the beginning," said Fred. "She was a spy for Mr. E, while pretending to be a friendly DJ."

"I remember looking at a wrecked-up radio station when we first got here," said Norville. "But wasn't she, like, attacked by robots? She must be one of the good guys, right?."

"Never can tell, with someone as devious as Mr. E," said Velma.

* * *

"You know what caused the explosion?" asked the Sheriff.

"Faulty wiring," said Cassidy.

"Works for me. Wrap it up, boys. We're heading out," said the Sheriff.

"That's it? Faulty wiring? You're not even going to investigate?" asked Mayor Nettles.

"Faulty wiring is a win-win-win situation," said Sheriff Stone. "Minimal paperwork for me, insurance money for the station, and a new public pool for the town."

"A public pool? What do you mean?" asked Mayor Nettles.

Sheriff Bronson Stone pointed to the smoking crater filled with water from the fire hoses.

"Case closed," said Nettles. "Van Ghoul movie at my house?"

"I'll get my smoker," said Stone.

The police cars headed out just as the gang arrived in the Mystery Machine.

"Cassidy, are you hurt?" asked Daphne.

"We brought ointment," said Fred.

Cassidy produced a shotgun and aimed it in their direction.

"She hates ointment!" yelled Norville.

"Hit the dirt!" said Cassidy.

They dropped, and Cassidy fired at the metal robot just behind them. The shotgun blast made a huge hole in it and it crashed to the ground.

"Cassidy, what's going on?" asked Daphne.

"Start with why there's a World War II-era robot on the ground," said Velma.

"We can't talk here," said Cassidy.

* * *

They gathered around the table outside the Clam Cabin. Scooby and Norville ate a large plate of clams as they talked.

"That robot's like the one who attacked you before, disguised as the Executioner, isn't it?" asked Velma.

"Yes," said Cassidy. "I've been in hiding, but I sneaked back so I could try to make broadcasts exposing Mr. E, Pericles, and the rest. Before I got very far, another Kriegstaffebot showed up and now the station is gone. I think Pericles controls them."

"Why didn't you contact us before this?" asked Fred.

"I would have told you sooner, but you all don't trust me," said Cassidy.

"With good reason," said Velma. "You lied to us."

"I hear you," said Cassidy, "But I've changed. Ask me anything, and I will tell you the truth."

Daphne said, "Okay. What's the story with you and Mr. E? Why did you help him?"

"It's, um, complicated," said Cassidy.

"Wrong answer," said Daphne, crossing her arms and turning away from Cassidy.

"Like, I trust you," said Norville.

"Why, Shaggy?" asked Cassidy. "You once said 'A fooled man can't get fooled again'. "

"I'm not that Shaggy," said Norville. "You haven't fooled me yet."

Velma said, "I've identified a Lassiter Gringol mollusk on this robot."

"Looks like a snail. Yecch!" said Scooby.

"It is a snail, Scooby- a rare sea snail whose picky mollusk diet restricts it to a deep Costa marine trench, located right off Crystal Cove," said Velma. "These robots must have an underwater origin in that trench. Aaaah!"

Another killer Nazi robot had come out of the sea and leaped up to their table, but Skipper Shelton harpooned it to the wall of the Clam Cabin.

"Aah! Go back to the deep where ya came from, ya scurvy tin fish!" said Shelton. Ya rusty scalawags are worse than sea rats! Sorry about that, kids. Free brine and cuttlefish on the house."

"Gang, we need to get to that trench," said Fred.

"And I know someone who can get us there," said Daphne.

* * *

Later that night, they met at the docks with Tom Williams and Tub Murphy. They were the young ocean-going sons of Dr. Paul Williams and Capt. Michael Murphy, the Simon and Garfunkel of marine biology. Daphne was their favorite babysitter.

The boys had a pet seal with them (named Scooby in honor of the locally famous dog), and it ate up Scooby's doggie bag from the Clam Cabin.

"Technically, that was Scooby's doggie bag, so, like, it's as much his as yours," said Norville.

Scooby looked like he didn't agree.

"So, are you guys sure that you can get us all the way down to that trench?" asked Fred.

"No problem! That's where the undersea town is," said Tom.

"Wait. Hold the phone! There's an undersea town?" asked Fred.

"Sure! We used to go all the time until those German robots ruined it," said Tub. "Dumb old robots."

"But how are we going to get there?" asked Velma.

"We'll take Moby!" said Tom.

Tub whistled, and a huge shape rose out of the sea.

"Relax," said Tom. "It's just Moby Dick, our sub."

* * *

Later, they were getting on diving suits and preparing to board the sub.

"Get to know your air tank," said Tom. If Moby loses power, and we have to bail, you can't breathe water. Trust me, we've tried."

"Like, isn't it too dark to dive? How can we see anything if we can't see anything?" asked Norville.

A glow came up from behind him. "Oh. Okay. Like, that's better," said Norville.

Scooby tapped him on the shoulder and stammered out a warning. Norville turned.

A giant glowing head appeared, the head of an old woman who spoke with a German accent, "Go no further! There is nothing for you beneath our waves, except doom! Travel below those waters, and you shall never see your home again."

The head vanished. Norville and Scooby were all for bailing out of the mission immediately, but the others, as usual, were only encouraged by the appearance of the ghost.

After the submarine dived, Tom and Tub wanted the controls to themselves, so the others hung back. Cassidy was going to ask Daphne about Fred; she saw Daphne looking at Fred confidently, inspired by the example of the parallel couple, so she moved on to talk to Norville instead.

"How are you holding up, Shaggy?" Cassidy asked.

"Like, as well as usual," said Norville. "I don't have combat training like you."

"I've been trained by Mr. E's experts in martial arts," said Cassidy. "But I thought you'd just been to military school."

"Other Shaggy," said Norville. "The closest I came was hypnosis one time to become fearless and unstoppable when I heard a code word, and back to normal when I heard or thought it again."

"What happened to that?" asked Cassidy. "Seems like something you could use about now."

"I had it taken off," said Norville. "It was a lot of trouble flipping back and forth. Especially when we didn't know the code."

"I've had some hypnosis training as part of my martial arts," said Cassidy. "Let's try to remove the block."

While Tom and Tub fooled with the lights and explained about the Midnight Zone, Cassidy worked with Norville. He was an excellent hypnosis subject, as the Ghost Clown and many others had discovered before.

"What was the key word?" Cassidy asked.

"Bad," said Norville.

"No, it's all right," said Cassidy. "You can tell me the word."

"Like, the word is 'bad'," said Norville.

"From now on, when you hear the word 'bad' spoken, you will become courageous and unstoppable like you were before. You will revert when you hear the word 'bad' spoken again. Only spoken, not thought, because that could cause cycles."

"Like, I understand," said Norville in a trance.

"When I snap my fingers, you will awake," said Cassidy. "You will be in your old state of mind until you hear the key word."

"Like, I'm awake," said Norville. "When do we start the hypnosis?"

"It's done," said Cassidy. "Bad."

Norville snapped to attention with a confident look on his face. "You know, Doll-Face, we ought to go out some time."

"It takes a brave man to use a nickname like Doll-Face on me," said Cassidy. "I like brave men."

"That's me," said Norville. "Brave and bad to the bone."

He reverted. "Zoinks! Did I just ask you for a date? Sorry."

"Don't be sorry," said Cassidy. "I may take you up on that offer, once we get through all this."

Norville gulped. What had he gotten himself into?

"It's too bad that I'm a generation older than you," said Cassidy.

Norville was back to Mr. Confidence. "I'm older than I look, Doll-Face. I'm at least a generation older than you."

Tom and Tub turned the outside lights back on again. There was a giant squid ahead, but they turned on an electric shock and drove it away.

"There it is, the undersea town!" said Tub.

"Wait," said Velma. "Is that- I think that's the lost town of missionaries that disappeared about 300 years ago. When did you guys find this?"

"I don't know," said Tom. "A while ago? Never ran into any missionaries, though. Just robots."

"Dumb old German robots," said Tub.

"Some say the missionaries' disappearance was the beginning of the curse of Crystal Cove," said Velma.

"Like, robots and curses? Ho-ho! I love it," said the courageous Norville.

Scooby looked at him oddly, and stammered, "Which button takes us home?"

Fred said, "My mystery sense is totally tingling. We've got to take a closer look at that town right now."

Fred tossed Norville an armful of air tanks. Norville caught them all with ease.

* * *

Moby Dick landed on the bottom and the gang swam out in their diving suits into the ruined missionary city.

"Jeepers, Fred," said Daphne. "Look at all those holes."

"Yeah. Looks like somebody's been digging," said Fred.

They explored a ruined house with several skeletons around a table.

"I think we just found out where the missionaries went," said Daphne.

"Yeah, out for seafood," said Velma.

"Let's check the cupboards," said Scooby.

Norville headed straight toward one cabinet, opened it for an instant, and slammed it hard into the face of a battle robot.

"Hah! I thought I heard something. Kriegstaffebots!" said fearless Norville.

"Swim!" shouted Cassidy. She added "Bad!" when it looked like Norville wanted to stay and fight the bots hand-to-hand.

They all swam away as fast as they could. The three Kriegstaffebots pursued.

"We can't out-swim them," said Fred. "They're too fast!"

"Tom, Tub, we need help!" said Daphne.

The three bots removed the diving helmets from Norville, Daphne, and Velma. Before the bots could do any more damage, Tom and Tub brought Moby Dick smashing down on them, and opened the mouth hatch for the gang to enter.

They barely had a chance to recover their breath when three more bots swam to the top of the sub and began forcing it toward the bottom. They went over an undersea cliff and landed on a shelf on the other side. Water flooded in from multiple leaks.

"Moby's messed up and venting oxygen!" said Tom.

"We need a place to lie low and make repairs!" said Tub.

"Like, how about that place?" said Norville.

He pointed and they all saw a large lighted facility attached to the cliff on the other side of them.

* * *

Tom and Tub brought their damaged sub into the airlock of the base.

"How fast can you fix Moby?" Fred asked Tom and Tub after everyone was out of the sub.

Before they could answer, the giant glowing ghost head appeared again. "You did not heed my warning. Now, the sea will make you pay... with your lives."

A hatch irised shut above them, and sea water poured in from two spouts on one side.

"Fred, this is a trap," said Daphne.

"I know," said Fred. "A really good one, too. I think I'm tingling again."

Daphne slapped him to bring him out of his trap trance. "No tingling. Focus, Fred. What do we do?"

"Oh, right," said Fred. "Uh, let's see. Looks like an early version of the Heinrich Aquabox, so A release valve should be right..."

Fred dived down for it. The water continued to rise, forcing them up to the ceiling.

"Where's Fred? Fred? Fred!" Daphne called.

The water closed over their heads. For a moment it looked like the end, but then the water began to drain out rapidly.

Fred was revealed standing by a large handle he had pulled down. "Fred one, trap zero."

Daphne rushed to him and threw her arms around him. "Fred, you're all right! I..." she suddenly realized what she was doing and pulled back. "Don't ever scare me like that again."

Cassidy opened a door into the rest of the building. "Let's move before Uberhead shows up again."

"Tom? Tub? Are you going to be OK here alone?" Daphne asked.

"Sure! Our dads once left us alone on a reef for two weeks," said Tom.

"We sucked on sea urchins for nourishment," said Tub. "We've got ocean skills!"

The gang reached a room full of robots pushing mining carts. The gang hid behind a cart and peeked over.

"Like, it looks like those robots are mining for something," said Norville.

"Quiet, Norville," said Fred. "They'll... Uh-oh."

One robot walked toward the cart, repeating the word "Eindringling" (which is German for "Intruder"). It lifted up the cart, but the gang had already slipped down a vent tunnel.

They found a panel in the floor and lifted it up, revealing a room with an assembly line.

"Well, I guess we know where Kriegstaffebots come from now," whispered Fred.

The Uberhead flashed into sight again, glaring at them. "So, you still live. Well, I promise you, the sea is more forgiving than my robots."

The assembly-line arms tore through the floor under them, and the gang found themselves in a fight with partially-completed bots.

"Like, those parts want to turn us into parts! Aah!" said Norville.

"Forget about the parts," said Fred. "I'm worried about the whole robots."

They found a nursery room with baby robots. Normally robots are assembled full-size, but this seemed to be some sort of AI experiment. Scooby-Doo thought one was cute and picked it up, but it spit out its pacifier and began to howl.

Drawn by the noise, more bots rushed in, and the Uberhead appeared, shouting "There is no escape!"

They ran down another corridor toward a door marked, "Main Control."

"Look!" said Cassidy. "The control room! I bet the head zeppelin that's been shadowing is behind that door attached to a body."

They saw a figure in a chair, turned away from them.

"There she is," said Fred.

"It's over, Miss October Pest," said Cassidy. "Call off the bots."

The chair turned, revealing a desiccated corpse.

"Like, that is worse than robots," said Norville.

"Nabiru," said a whispering voice.

"Did that thing just whisper?" asked Scooby-Doo.

"I heard it, too," said Fred. "It sounded like..."

"Nabiru," said Velma.

"You think that was her name?" asked Daphne.

"No. Her name was Frau Abigail Gluck," said Velma.

Velma said, "She was part of the benevolent lodge of mystery, the mystery-solving gang formed by Burlington in the 1880s."

Cassidy said, "There was another mystery-solving group in the 1920's: the Darrow family. I meant to get their pictures to you, Velma, but I never got the chance."

"Including us and the original Mystery Incorporated, that makes four groups," said Daphne.

"My guess... there's more," said Velma. "Almost as if... this has all happened before."

"Exactly right, Mystery, Incorporated," said a familiar German-accented voice.

They turned and saw a bird perched on the shoulders of one of a small army of Kriegstaffebots which had silently sneaked up behind them.

"Professor Pericles?" they all said in chorus.

"Ah! Lovely," said Pericles, flying forward and perching on the top of the corpse's head. "I see you have met what's left of Frau Gluck."

He explained his history with the former Nazi scientist, and how she had turned her robots into underwater exploration machines to the search for a lost piece of the Planespheric disk in the ruined city.

"My holographic masquerade as Frau Gluck bought my bots all the time they needed," said Pericles. "And I would have gotten away with eliminating Cassidy if it weren't for you meddling kids."

The bot that Pericles was perched on handed him a piece of the Disk.

"Now that I have everything I need, I can dispose of this place and all of you at the same time," said Pericles.  
Farewell, darling kinder. Farewell."

A hatch opened with an escape pod, and Pericles shot away to the surface.

"Time to go," said Cassidy. She kicked a way through the advancing bots and they all got out of the room, locking the door on the bots.

"Self destruct in 10 seconds and counting," said a robot voice.

"We can't make it to Moby!" said Fred.

"We've got to try!" said Cassidy.

They slid down a tube that fortunately led to the airlock room where Tom and Tub were fixing Moby Dick.

"We're leaving now!" called Fred.

"I wish! Moby's stuck!" said Tub.

"The only way we can leave is if someone stays behind and keeps the doors open with this manual override lever!" said Tom.

"I'll do it," said Cassidy.

"No!" said Daphne.

"I'll be right behind you," said Cassidy. "Trust me, I'm a fast swimmer."

"Like, I'm staying to help you," said Norville. "Bad."

"Go!" said Cassidy. "I'll be fine. Bad."

Norville shook his head. "Bad."

"You're unstoppable, so I can't stop you. But everyone else, go!" said Cassidy.

Everyone but Cassidy and Norville got through the hatch into Moby Dick.

Daphne turned at the hatch and said, "What I asked about before, why you helped Mr. E.? You loved him once, didn't you?"

"What E. and I had, we lost a long time ago," said Cassidy. "Don't make the same mistake I did. Now, go!"

Hordes of Kriegstaffebots were advancing into the airlock room from every direction.

"Norville, baby," said Cassidy. "Use your muscles on this lever. I'll hold off the bots."

"I should be fighting," said the fearless Norville.

"I have more training," said Cassidy.

Norville nodded. He held the lever open while Cassidy kicked the bots, knocking them back into each other in heaps. Their massive numbers were actually a disadvantage, since they got tangled up with each other.

As soon as Moby Dick was free, Cassidy and Norville dived into the water and swam after the sub. Tom opened the mouth and they both swam inside. Behind them, the building exploded and fell off the cliffs into the depths. Even the sunken city broke apart and fell into the trench.

* * *

Back at the surface, they all breathed a huge sigh of relief.

"You saved us," said Daphne. "I guess we were wrong about you, Cassidy."

"I couldn't have done it without Norville," said Cassidy. "He's a real hero."

"Norville a fearless hero?" said Fred. "Wow."

"Get used to it, Jones," said Norville.

"Reah, get used to it," said Scooby. "I hope I will," he said softly to himself.

"It'll be the other gang and the other Scooby that will have to do that," said Norville. "Yours is still the same old cowardly buddy you know and love."

* * *

The sub reached the shore and they said goodbye to Tom and Tub. Cassidy prepared to leave on her motorcycle.

"Hey, Doll-Face, what if we spend a little time together?" said Norville. "We just escaped with our lives and I feel like celebrating."

Cassidy gave him a thoughtful look. "This is just the hypnosis talking, isn't it, you bad boy."

Norville snapped back, but said, "Like, it's really me, too."

Cassidy said, "All right, you can hang out at my secret hideout for a while."

Norville said. "Not bad. Let's go, Doll-Face."

He got on the back of Cassidy's motorcycle.

"Tell the gang I'll see them soon," said Norville. "And that we have a new member."

They sped away.


	19. Disk Heist

The morning after the new Mystery Inc. (with the old Shaggy, aka Norville) was dealing with the underwater crisis, the old Mystery Inc. (with the Crystal Cove Shaggy) was dealing with the crisis at the ski lodge.

"My pieces of the Disk have been stolen," said Mr. E. "And I strongly suspect that all of you had something to do with it. Who else would know their value?"

"We had nothing to do with it," said Frederick (the old Fred).

"We'll help you get to the bottom of it, though," said Anne (the old Daphne).

Dace (the old Velma) examined the scratches on the door of Mr. E's room. Shaggy was close by her side.

"Something left these scratches," said Dace. "Something with claws. I see traces of bear-like hair, as well."

"Who would know better how to fake a monster attack than Mystery Incorporated, who has dealt with so many fake monsters?" said Mr. E. "Fuhrman, call the police."

"At once, Mr. Owens," said Fuhrman. He left to make the call.

"Like, who is this Fuhrman guy with you?" asked Shaggy.

"My Head of Security at Destroido," said Mr. E.

"A new hire?" asked Frederick.

"That is no business of yours," said Mr. E.

"Ret Ruhrman's a rook," said Scoobert (the original Scooby-Doo, who spoke with more r's than the new Scooby).

"I don't trust you," said Mr. E. "Let's let the police sort it out."

"We'll find the real culprit, and clear our names," said Anne.

"Let's split up, gang," said Frederick. "And look for tracks leading to and from the hotel. The snow is fresh and it will show up bear-monster prints."

"B-bear monster prints?" said Shaggy. Scoobert jumped into his arms.

"Anne, Dace, and I will search clockwise, and you and Scoobert can search counter-clockwise," said Frederick. "We'll meet around the other side of the hotel."

"Unless, like, the Scarebear monster meets us first," said Shaggy.

"Or eats rus rirst," said Scoobert.

As usual, when the gang met up Shaggy and Scoobert were running.

"Like, the Scarebear almost got us!" Shaggy shouted.

"Rolmost rot rus!" agreed Scoobert.

"Let's check the tracks and verify my suspicions," said Dace.

"Not us, we're going back into the hotel to wait," said Shaggy.

"You know if you do that the Scarebear will attack you there again, especially if you go somewhere together looking for food," said Frederick. "If you stick with us the chances are we won't see the monster again for a while."

"Like, you guys really know the formula, don't you?" said Shaggy.

"We've been doing this a lot longer than you," said Anne.

Dace photographed and measured the prints. Frederick also began to plan a trap to catch the monster the next time it appeared.

While they waited for the police to arrive, the gang also made several cell-phone calls. Reception in the mountains was poor, but they got through.

Sheriff Stone finally showed up. "All right, I've had about enough trouble from you kids, and this time I've caught you dead to rights. Let me search your stuff."

"We don't have anything that belongs to Mr. Owens," Dace said.

"I want to look in that Mystery Machine of yours. I see a box in there with lasers shining all around it," said Stone.

"Those are my traps," said Frederick. "You'll never get in without help."

"Then give me your help or you're all under arrest for obstruction of justice," said Stone.

Reluctantly, Frederick opened the box and handed the contents to the Sheriff: three flat, shining, pieces of metal.

"Let me look at them," said Mr. E. "Yes, they look very much like my missing disk pieces. Let me be sure."

He took the pieces and turned them over in his hands, examining them carefully.

"This is all a trick!" said Shaggy. "Like, those are ours. You were never robbed at all. You just accused us to get our disk pieces."

"Reah, a rick!" said Scoobert.

"Are those doodads valuable?" asked Stone.

"Priceless," said Mr. E.

"How about that! I can finally place all of you meddling kids under arrest, for good," said Stone. "Grand theft!"

There was a snarl, and a giant monster bear charged into the room. Everyone backed away.

"I'm the Scarebear! Those aren't his disk pieces. I have the real ones! I can't let these kids get blamed for my crime!"

"You can talk?" Shaggy asked.

"Of course I can talk," said the Scarebear.

"Let's see who the Scarebear really is," said Anne.

Fred unmasked him.

"Mr. Fuhrman!" they all said in chorus.

"That's right, and Fuhrman isn't my real name," said the unmasked Scarebear. "It's Hairmore."

"Why did you change it?" Frederick asked.

"Isn't it obvious, man? Hairmore would give me away as the Scarebear. Like, duh!"

The gang looked at each other, wondering if Hairmore was kidding. Apparently he wasn't.

"All I wanted was to expose Destroido for the sick, soul-destroying evil that it is. Destroido ruins lives, and pays victims to remain quiet. This is one victim who won't remain quiet any longer!"

"How are you a victim?" asked Anne. "You look fine."

"Am I, pretty scarlet-headed temptress?" asked Hairmore. "What if I were to tell you I'm not, in fact, wearing a bear suit, but am covered completely in animal hair?"

"Except for your face?" asked Frederick.

"It would be covered too, handsome, square-jawed young hero, if I didn't have to shave every few hours just to maintain my non-hirsute appearance."

"You see, I purchased a bottle of Gentle Rainflower Bodywash for Men," said Hairmore. "A heavenly scent designed to bring the ladies running. What I didn't know was that the company, Musky Farms, is a division of Destroido and that there's a side-effect. When I contacted Destroido about their product turning me into a hairy bear-man, the company acted as if what had happened to me was – nothing, and tried to pay me off."

He told them that he had taken a job at Destroido to try to prove the product was dangerous, and that he had discovered it was originally a fertilizer which was so toxic it destroyed an entire town.

"I planned to get proof to expose them in public today, and I would have gotten away with it, if not for you mutant-animal-hating kids!"

"I feel kind of bad that we got in the way," said Frederick. "Destroido deserves to be exposed."

"I failed anyway. I thought that the disks Mr. Owens had were computer disks with evidence of the company's corruption, but it turns out they were nothing but historical artifacts of no use to me whatsoever."

"Give them back to me and I won't press charges," said Mr. E.

"Here they are," said Hairmore, pulling three metal disc pieces from his fur.

"By the way, Hairmore," said Mr. E.

"Yes?"

"You're fired."

"Now give us back our pieces, E.," said Dace.

"Very well," said Mr. E. He handed them back. "No harm, no foul."

* * *

Back at his lair, Mr. E called in Brad, Judy, and Professor Pericles.

"The ruse worked," said Mr. E. "In the confusion, I was able to exchange their pieces for duplicates."

"Perfect," said Professor Pericles.

"All the pieces of..." said Brad.

"The Planespheric Disc are ours!" said Judy.

"I believe it's time to put all of it together," said Mr. E.

Mr. E entered the musical code and they all went down the elevator into the secure room. The piece container was empty except for a single CD.

"I don't understand," said Brad.

"Where are our pieces?" asked Judy.

Mr. E put the CD into a player. An image of Fred came on the screen.

"If you're watching this, you're probably wondering what's happened to your pieces of the Planespheric Disc," said Fred. "In a word, you've been scammed, conned, bamboozled."

"That's three words, Fred, but I think they get the idea," said Daphne. "We, the local team, did this to you."

"Yeah," said Scooby-Doo.

"Except for me, I'm from the out-of-town team," said Norville. "And we will be more than happy to tell you how we did it."

"It was all a plan masterminded by your very own Freddie," said Velma.

"We knew you might try something to get our disc pieces, so we kept a trapped box with duplicates in the Mystery Machine," said Fred.

"We guessed right away that you didn't have the real pieces with you, just fakes" said Velma. "And it was obvious you were entrapping your supposed Head of Security into a crime. Of course a background check would be done for a position that sensitive and it would turn up that he was a dissatisfied customer in disguise."

"So while you were distracted by working on that scheme on team A, team B went ahead to get the real pieces in your lair," said Daphne.

Cassidy Williams moved onto the screen, "You ought to be really sure you've successfully murdered someone who knows your access code to the vault."

"And once we had that code..." said Scooby.

"We could give it to our operative," said Velma. "Someone with intimate knowledge of Mr. E's lair: Hot Dog Water."

"Hot Dog Water?" said Mr. E.

"I still know how to get in touch with her," said Velma, blushing a little.

"Like, when Velma told Hot Dog Water what we had planned, HDW was in," said Norville.

"And while we stole the real pieces..." said Scooby-Doo.

"...You were stealing fake ones," said Fred.

"The real pieces were instead safely hidden with the one person no one would ever suspect," said Daphne. "Fred's fake father, the ex-mayor Jones."

"My not-really-my-dad dad may have betrayed us once to get the disc pieces, but when he heard what we were planning, he was more than glad to help us take you down," said Fred.

"I guess I secretly hoped you guys might not try to steal the pieces from us. But I guess I always knew you would," said Fred. "Real Mom, real Dad, I already knew not to trust you. That's never going to change."

"And we're taking Cassidy with us, too," said Norville, "You don't deserve her, Mr. E."

"Got that right, baby," said Cassidy, putting her arm around Norville.

* * *

The Crystal Cove team (with Norville) got together on the top of their Mystery Machine.

"Oh," said Daphne."Let's see what it looks like - the whole Planespheric Disc."

They put the pieces together and glowing sparkles rose from the device.

"Like, whoa," said Norville.

"It's beautiful," said Velma.

"We have the whole thing," said Fred. "That leaves only one question."

"What do we do now?" asked Scooby.

Deep in a cave in another dimension, the Entity gave its answer with an evil laugh: "Nibiru."


	20. Falconry

The two Mystery Incorporated groups were meeting at Fred's house. Shaggy and Scooby-Doo were lounging in front of the TV.

"Look, gang," said Shaggy. "The Blue Falcon is on TV."

"Rue Ralcon and Rynomutt?" asked Scoobert (the other Scooby, from a parallel universe).

"Yeah, he's my rero," said Scooby. Unlike his counterpart, his speech was not quite so full of r's.

"Like, is it the new movie series, or the old TV series?" asked Norville (the other Shaggy).

"Like, it's the news," said Shaggy.

"So the Blue Falcon is still an active superhero in this world?" asked Dace (the other Velma). "In our world he retired years ago, and revealed his secret identity as a rich art dealer named Radley Crown."

"I wouldn't call him a superhero," said Cassidy Williams. "I know about him through Mr. E. The Blue Falcon's a down and dirty vigilante."

"Not the one we knew," said Anne (the other Daphne). "He was a true hero. We even helped him on some cases, like with Mr. Hyde."

"We had a case with the Ghost of Mr. Hyde, a jewel thief," said Daphne.

"We had one like that, too. But this wasn't the same guy," said Frederick (the other Fred). "This one had a chemical that could turn people into monsters, and he was blackmailing Big City to become mayor."

"When the Blue Falcon retired and sold TV series rights to his adventures, they stretched that one case into, like, five episodes," said Norville.

"Then someone bought the movie rights, and they cut out Owen Garrison, the actor who played him on TV," said Anne.

"That is, until he got publicity from a new case where a villain impersonated Mr. Hyde and tried to frame him," said Dace. "Then he got a role in the movie sequel."

"Did the Ralcon have Rynomutt?" asked Scooby.

"Yes, a goofy robot dog that was always messing up," said Frederick. "Like a robotic Scooby."

"I resemble rhat remark," said Scoobert.

Cassidy Williams said, "The Dynomutt of our world isn't goofy. Perhaps he comes across that way, but since he works for a vigilante he's very dangerous. He'll cheerfully kill on command for his master."

"Like the dark and edgy movie version they made of our Blue Falcon and Dynomutt," said Dace.

"So Shaggy, what did they say about him on TV?" asked Daphne.

"He's been spotted near Crystal Cove," said Shaggy. "Like, I hope we don't run into him."

"Re too," said Scooby.

"We're not likely to today," said Velma. "I have something to show you at our headquarters at City Hall. Now that we have the entire Planispheric Disk, I was able to find a hidden message on it. I cobbled together a device to decode the message and play it back."

* * *

The device looked like a combination of an old record player and Speak-And-Spell. The Disk pieces were attached in a spiral within the device.

"The sooner we find out what this is supposed to do, the sooner we'll solve the mystery of the cursed treasure," said Velma.

The player clicked, and a single word appeared on its screen: "NIBIRU".

"Nibiru!" said everyone in chorus.

"That's the same word Abigail Gluck said!" said Daphne.

"Gulp! Like, yeah, the one that means Doomsday!" said Shaggy. He and Scooby held each other.

There was a cry in the distance.

"That came from the records room!" said Fred.

Everyone ran to the City Hall records room, where a gray-haired man lay on the floor.

"Gang, look!" said Frederick, pointing his flashlight at the man.

Fred said, "He must have passed out from exhaustion trying to load this vintage reel-to-reel hi-fi stereo."

"That's not a stereo, Fred," said Velma. "It's an old mainframe computer. And whoever made this mess must have surprised the old clerk – and they could still be here."

There was a flash of blue electricity, revealing a huge metallic dragon-like figure with its hands in one of the computers. It roared and leaped at them, but a blast from the ceiling knocked it back.

The gangs looked up, and saw a huge hole in the roof. Through the hole they could see a huge, powerfully-built man wearing a mask and a cape, with a masked gray dog beside him.

"Jinkies! - " said Dace.

"I can't believe it," said Fred.

"It's - The Blue Falcon!" said Norville.

"And Rynomutt, Rog Ronder!" said Scoobert.

The Blue Falcon leaped down in front of the Dragon.

"Better think twice, dirt bag, if you have nerve endings and pain centers like any other perp."

Dynomutt flew down to the floor with helicopter blades that extended from a panel in his back.

"Let's make this dragon scream," said Blue Falcon.

"Whatever you say, B.F." said the Dog Wonder in a cheerful voice.

The masked man and his dog engaged the monster in combat, dodging fire blasts from the creature while attacking it with bolo cables and bombs. The gangs took cover behind the computers.

"Hmm. I can't say I fully endorse the concept of a masked vigilante," said Velma.

"Velma! He's a superhero with a belt full of traps!" said Fred.

The fight continued, with Blue Falcon barely holding his own against the monster while Dynomutt provided sometimes useful, sometimes ridiculous assistance (including a fishing magician to de-scale, de-bone, and de-stinkify fish in half the time).

The monster temporarily seemed to tire, but then it roused itself and blasted away through the hole the Falcon had left in the ceiling.

The Blue Falcon became aware of the young people in the room.

"Don't even breathe," the Falcon said. "There are 17 methods to incapacitate you, and all of them hurt."

"We're not bad guys, Mr. Falcon," said Fred.

Hearing his hypnotic code word, Norville snapped into his fearless persona.

"We're Mystery, Incorporated," said Norville with complete confidence.

"Corporate greed is another symptom of a society rotting from the inside out," said the Blue Falcon.

Scooby and Shaggy came up to Dynomutt.

"You're my hero!" said Scooby.

"Yeah," said Shaggy. "Like, me and Scoob watch you guys on the news all the time! We solve mysteries and catch bad guys, just like you!"

(Norville reverted to his normal cowardly self.)

"Are you an unstoppable, perfect crime-stopping machine?" Dynomutt asked Scooby.

Shaggy laughed. "No. He messes up all the time."

"In that case, put 'er there, pal," said Dynomutt, putting out a gloved paw.

"What brings you to Crystal Cove, Blue Falcon?" asked Daphne.

"We've been tracking that dragon creature in hopes it would lead us to its evil master," said the Falcon.

"Well, masked man, Crystal Cove is our turf," said Velma. "You want a mystery solved and a villain unmasked, you talk to us."

Blue Falcon scowled at this, but Dog Wonder extended a nose to sniff them.

"Hey, blue buddy, I like the smell of these kids. Why don't we let them tag along?"

"Very well," said the Falcon. "But you should know that should I need to sacrifice any of you to get my prey, I'll gladly do it."

He shot up a grappling hook and flew out through the ceiling.

"Oh, B.F. " giggled Dynomutt. Then he turned to the gangs and said seriously, "He's not kidding, either."

Dace said, "Can you get your blue buddy to hold on for a minute? Velma and I may be able to hack into the City Hall computer system and find out exactly what that dragon was after."

* * *

While Dace and Velma worked, Scooby, Scoobert, and Dynamutt chatted about chasing squirrels.

Fred and Daphne talked too.

"Fred, I've noticed your ascots are filthy. Couldn't you do your laundry once in a while?"

"I'm living on the edge, at home without my parents," said Fred. "Sometimes I have to skip the niceties."

"What's going to happen if someone you care about- but who's still on the fence about you- wants to-I don't know- visit by herself?"

"I suppose I could move the shark cage out my room to make more space," said Fred. "But the lizard hammock stays.

I'm firm on that."

Daphne turned away with a disgusted groan.

Anne approached her. "Daphne, I couldn't help but overhear. The more I see you reconciling with Fred, the more I'm encouraged about me and Frederick."

"Don't be too encouraged," said Daphne. "Fred's oblivious to my feelings, as usual."

"You were engaged once," said Anne. "That's much further than I ever got."

"He broke it off to go find his real parents," said Daphne. "And he picked up the hygenic habits of a hobo in the process."

"That makes it tough," said Anne.

"I told him we could just be friends and he accepted that," said Daphne. "But I'm pretty sure we'll get back together eventually."

Anne said, "Thank you, that really helps."

Velma showed Blue Falcon the results on her laptop.

"City Hall records. How'd you get past the encryption?" asked the Falcon.

"I may not have a bird-themed utility belt and a predisposition for violence, but I do have some mad skills of my own," said Velma.

"And from the looks of things, so does our dragon," said the Falcon. "He was going through old sales records of all Crystal Cove businesses."

"With a special eye toward this one-Quest Industries," said Velma. "It was a cutting-edge tech firm until it was sold to Crystal Cove's most prominent corporation."

"Destroido?" said everyone in chorus as the name came up on the screen.

"Hold on," said Cassidy Williams. "We're not going anywhere near Destroido right now."

"I take it you've had dealings with this vile corporation before, and that it's corrupt to its soulless core," said Blue Falcon.

"We're well-acquainted with the owner Ricky Owens, codename Mr. E.," said Fred.

"Too well-acquainted," said Cassidy. "Given some things that happened between us recently, it would be foolish to go there. Don't forget, his parrot tried to kill me."

"Then we part ways here," said the Falcon. "Because that's exactly where I plan to attack next."

"Good luck," said Cassidy, patting Dynomutt's head.

The two superheros left quickly through the hole in the roof.

"Cassidy, that was a mistake," said Norville. "Like, you talked us right out of the case."

"We can follow up a different lead," said Cassidy. "I think it will be more interesting to go directly to Quest Industries."

"But Blue Falcon might need our help," said Daphne.

"He might," said Cassidy, "Which is why I just planted a tracer on Dynomutt when I patted him."

* * *

Dr. Quest (already a friend of the gang from previous cases) was willing to fill them in about the origin of Dynomutt.

"Radley Crown used to work for us as a security guard. He had a beloved guard dog who worked with him, named Reggie. One night a dragon-armored villain broke into the lab, and Reggie was nearly electrocuted as a result of biting into the armor," said Dr. Quest.

"Zoinks!" said Shaggy. "What happened then?"

"We repaired Reggie in the Questlab," said Dr. Quest. "We rebuilt him stronger, better. We made him into Dynomutt."

"How come you put all those attachments in Rynomutt?" asked Scooby. "Rike a fishing magician?"

"Row's rhere renough room?" asked Scoobert.

"There is a quantum superposition of unlimited equipment possibilities, to be summoned at will," said Dr. Quest.

"It's not that difficult," said Dace. "I made a Dogbot myself once, inspired by Dynomutt."

"Did you ever find out what the Dragon wanted at Questlabs?" asked Velma.

"Not exactly," said Dr. Quest. "It was probably industrial espionage. I had just completed the Quest-X power source, and I know my old enemy Dr. Zin would do anything to obtain it."

"Could the Dragon have been working for Dr. Zin?" asked Daphne.

"That's a possibility," said Dr. Quest. "That Dragon armor is his sort of fiendish work."

"If Zin is still after the Quest-X power source, that may explain the raid on City Hall today," said Velma. "Zin might assume that your new corporate owner, Destroido, took over the invention for development."

"That assumption would be incorrect," said Dr. Quest. "We used the only prototype of the Quest-X for a vital purpose."

"Like, what?" asked Shaggy.

"To power the cyborg heart of Dynomutt," said Dr. Quest.

"Then what the Dragon wants is inside Dynomutt himself!" said Fred.

"Rynomutt's rin ranger!" said Scoobert.

There was a beeping sound from the tracking device in Cassidy's pocket. She got it out and looked at it.

"Bad news, gang," said Cassidy. "According to this, Dynomutt's just been captured."

The groups put their heads together for a rescue plan.

"It looks like Dynomutt is being taken to Volcano Island, offshore," said Cassidy. "It would be a great place for a lair for someone like Dr. Zinn."

"Volcano Island? Funny, you'd think we'd know about a smoking volcano so close to our town," said Velma.

"It's almost unknown in town, but when E. did the historical research he discovered it was the location of the final showdown between Dead Justice and Nitro Wisinski, back when it used to be connected to the mainland by a narrow land bridge," said Cassidy.

"But how do we get there?" asked Anne.

"You've come to the right place," said Dr. Quest. "I have a small amphibious plane with the latest in stealth technology that you can use. Like the costume of the Obliteratrix, it has invisibility features."

"Who here can fly a plane?" asked Velma.

"I can," said Fred. "I learned the basics of escaping from airplane trap situations."

"I could drive it," said Shaggy.

Anne and Norville also put up their hands.

"Like, we flew all over the place as crime reporters," said Norville.

"You need a real expert. Race Bannon will pilot it for you," said Dr. Quest. "And I'd like you to take my sons Johnny and Hadji along. They're been itching for an adventure."

Race said, "I wish we could, Doctor Quest, but with the two Scooby gangs plus Cassidy, we just can't fit anyone else in the plane."

* * *

Race managed an amphibious landing near the island without incident, just barely evading detection because of the plane's invisibility technology and his expert piloting.

The gang found the entrance to Zin's lair, where both Blue Falcon and Dynomutt were restrained against the wall with metal clamps.

"I'll tell you everything about the Quest-X power source," said the Falcon. "Just don't hurt my dog!"

"Thank you, B.F.," said Dynomutt.

"You will soon have enough power for a lifetime, my dragon," said Zin.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that if I was you, Zin," said Fred as the gang entered.

"Get them!" Zin called to his guards.

The martial arts skills of Cassidy, Anne, Race, and Norville (in "bad" mode) made short work of the goons. The rest of the gang helped also with their own impromptu fighting techniques, like Fred and Daphne's back-to-back kicking combo. They soon had the Falcon and Dynomutt free from the clamps.

"New look?" Dynomutt asked Shaggy on seeing his combat war-paint.

"I had some makeup left over from military school," said Shaggy.

They found Zin bending over the figure of the Dragon, which had slumped to the floor.

"I have failed you, my dragon," said Zin. "What bitterness to lose with the Quest-X power source in our grasp."

Zin pointed at Dynomutt. "It's all your fault!"

"My fault? Gee, what'd I do? I hadn't a clue!" said Dynomutt.

"Allow me to elucidate, Dog Wonder," said Blue Falcon.

The Falcon told Dynomutt the story the gang had already heard at Quest Labs, about how Reggie the security dog had become Dynomutt, a cyborg powered by the Quest-X power source.

"But Dynomutt wasn't the only cyborg created in that explosion, was he, Dr. Zin?" asked Velma.

"No," said Zin. "Stealing the Quest-X was to be a trial run for my greatest creation- the dragon battle suit. So precious was this invention, I trusted only one person to test it- my own daughter. The accident fused the suit to Jenny and has been feeding off of her life force ever since. How did you know?"

"I guessed after seeing the way the Dragon reacted when it was weak, like a human and not a robot," said Velma.

"But why the obsession with Dynomutt?" asked Fred.

"Not the dog, the Quest-X inside!" said Zin. "With that to power the dragon suit, my Jenny would survive. But now..."

"I had no idea," said Blue Falcon.

"Oh, my goodness gracious! Why didn't you say so?" said Dynomutt. "Never to busy to help a fellow cyborg with a jump start."

Dynomutt extended a power cable from his chest and plugged it into the Dragon.

"Dog Wonder, no! The feedback could destroy you both!" said the Falcon.

Glowing blue energy enveloped both the Dragon and the cyborg dog.

"It's gonna blow!" Fred shouted.

But after a brilliant flash of white light, the chest of the Dragon opened and a young woman fell free.

"Father?" said Jenny.

"Jenny!" said Zin, with tears in his eyes.

"Aww! Isn't that sweet?" said Scooby, giggling.

"Robot dog, meddling kids and adults, man in bird suit, you have my thanks," said Zin. "I have spent so many years pursuing my evil plan of global domination, I sometimes forget the beauty of a simple act of selfless kindness."

Panels opened in the floor behind the mastermind and his daughter, extending escape rocket packs to them, which they quickly put on.

"It's a pity you must all now be destroyed as this island explodes with the fury of 1,000 suns!"

"Good one, dad! Let's motor," said Jenny.

They blasted away as the base's self-destruct mechanisms set in and the island began to cave in.

"Well, for an evil, crazed scientist, he certainly has a unique sense of humor," said Dynomutt.

"Let's get out of here!" said Shaggy.

"Yipe!" said Scooby.

Dynomutt formed into a life raft, and in it they got out of the range of the explosion, which wiped out Dr. Quest's plane (as well as all the unfortunate henchmen that were left behind).

"This is not over," said Blue Falcon. "I'll hunt him. I'll find him. And when I do..."

"Dude! Would you give it a rest? Zin isn't all that bad," said Shaggy.

The Blue Falcon looked at him, and growled.

"After all, he loves his daughter almost as much as we love our dogs."

Dynomutt extended his neck to lick Blue Falcon, the Scoobys licked their respective Shaggys, and everyone laughed.


	21. Theatrical Threat

It was evening, and the combined gang drove up to Daphne's mansion in the local version of the Mystery Machine. They parked on the side of the house rather than the driveway, because they were sneaking in.

"Up the servant staircase, quick!" said Daphne.

"But Daphne, you don't have to do this," said Fred.

"Yes, Fred, I do," said Daphne. "I think you'll be safer here, now that we have all the pieces of the Planespheric Disk. We don't want your parents coming after you in your old house."

"I have my traps to protect me," said Fred.

Velma said, "But your parents are trap experts, and Pericles once hacked into your whole system."

Daphne led them into a large room with a billiard table and couch.

"Woah," said Shaggy.

"You and Nova should be okay in here," said Daphne.

"I'll visit you every day," Scooby-Doo told Nova, who preened herself with her paw.

Shaggy's cell phone beeped. "Like, it's a text from Vincent Van Ghoul."

He showed off the message, which read "HEEP!" followed by many more exclamation points.

"Heep? What the heck's that mean?" asked Scooby.

"Zoinks, Van Ghoul!" said Norville, the other Shaggy. "What does that creepy warlock want now?"

"He's a movie star," said Shaggy. "Like, he's not a real warlock, but he played one in 'The Pit and the Pendulous'."

"In our world he was very real," said Anne. "And so were the ghosts we fought with his help. Thirteen ghosts that we had to get back into a Chest of Demons before they took over the world."

"Zoinks!" said Shaggy. "All of you were in on this?"

"Just me, Norville, Scoobert, and the puppy you don't like us to mention," said Anne. "Plus Van Ghoul and a young con artist named Flim Flam."

Shaggy and Daphne flinched at that name.

"Flim Flam! Like, you're sure this was all real?" asked Shaggy.

"Rabsolutely," said Scoobert, the other Scooby.

Velma asked her counterpart, "Dace, do you endorse this?"

Dace said, "I wasn't involved in the Thirteen Ghosts adventure, but I have to admit that some of our cases have had genuine supernatural elements. Very rarely, but it can happen."

"I'm surprised at you," said Velma.

"Our Flim Flam is in prison for fraud," said Daphne. "So is his Van Ghoul impersonator accomplice. There were supposed to be thirteen ghosts and a Chest of Demons, but it was all a huge scam. We caught on before we got to the last two fake ghosts."

"Like, we didn't finish our case, either," said Norville. "Supposedly, Scoobert and I had to be the ones to put the ghosts back in the chest, because we let them out. But the last time, Flim Flam just sucked up the ghost with a vacuum machine and popped it into the chest without any help from us, and it stayed in. That's when Scoob and I quit."

"Rey ridn't really reed us," said Scoobert.

"Van Ghoul and Flim Flam took it from there," said Norville. "They finished up the rest of the ghosts just fine."

"I was disgusted with you for a while, that you quit with the fate of the world at stake," said Anne. "That's when we broke up... umm, I mean... we broke up as a mystery-solving team."

Frederick, the other Fred, nodded at this, oblivious to the implications of Anne's slip of the tongue. The local Daphne and Shaggy's faces also turned red and they looked at the ground, but the local Fred was likewise oblivious.

Cassidy Williams was more perceptive, but she just moved close to Norville and whispered, "Don't worry, boyfriend. It was all in the past; it's nothing I'm going to get jealous over."

"Well, let's go see our world's Van Ghoul and see what's up," said Velma. "He may have another problem we can help with, like the time we caught the fake Nightfright monster that was haunting his reality show."

* * *

Van Ghoul met them at the Crystal Cove Haunted Historical Society Theater, on the stage with a ruined set.

"I meant to type 'HELP.' I'm no good with these new-fangled gadgets," said Van Ghoul. "But I was in such a panicked state. Mayor Nettles called and asked me to take over the play. Evidently, the director and the star suddenly quit. Obviously, I jumped at the chance. I'm a great supporter of amateur dramatics. And truth be told, my career could use a goose."

He gestured to the broken set.

"But when I arrive, I find the set's been destroyed. And worse, the only copy of the script has been ripped to pieces! What am I to do?"

Van Ghoul sank to the ground and began to cry.

"Don't worry, Mr. Van Ghoul," said Shaggy.

"We'll help you," said Scooby.

"We will?" chorused the other members of the local gang.

"We will," said Shaggy firmly. "After all the times you guys have gotten Scooby and I in trouble, - you owe us."

"Big time," said Scooby.

"Please?" begged Van Ghoul.

"Well...OK," said Fred.

"Oh, thank you! Thank you!" said Van Ghoul, embracing Fred to his great embarrassment.

"This I got to see," said a voice behind them.

"George Avocados?" chorused the gang.

"That's AvOCados," said the man in a blue uniform, correcting the pronunciation as he gestured dramatically with his push broom.

"Mr. Avocados, what are you doing here?" asked Daphne (not correcting the way she said his name).

"Sweeping. That's what a janitor does, isn't it?" said Avocados.

"Janitor?" chorused everyone.

"After my farm was ruined by pollution from Destroido, the only job I could get was back here at City Hall as a janitor! And a good thing, too. Now I get to watch you all make fools of yourselves trying to put on that play. And when you fail, I'll be here to clean up your mess."

Avocados began an evil laugh, but he was cut short by his boss. "Avocados! Back to work."

"That's AvOCados," the janitor muttered sullenly.

The two gangs set to work repairing the set, while Velma looked through the torn-up script.

"Most of the script's missing, but it looks like they were trying to tell the story of Friar Serra and his donkey Porto," said Velma.

"The ones who saved everyone when the first town of Crystal Cove sank into the ocean?" asked Van Ghoul.

"Mm-hmm," said Velma.

"Like, the same underwater town with those killer robots?" asked Shaggy.

"Bingo."

"Huh?" said Shaggy. Both he and Scooby began to whimper.

"I still don't understand why Mr. LeFranc and Doogle would smash the set and run off like that," said Daphne.

"Typical theater folk," said Van Ghoul. "I once saw Lionel Barrymore attack a settee with a lead pipe. But we'll show them who the true professionals are."

Frederick spoke up. "There's got to be more to this. Remember, we're Mystery Incorporated. No matter what we're involved in, there's always a monster case."

"Like, every time?" said Shaggy.

"Every time," said Dace.

"It was true for the old Mystery Incorporated, too," said Cassidy.

"While you guys help Mr. Van Ghoul with the production, we'll open an investigation," said Frederick. "We'll find the person in the monster suit behind all this and save the show from getting messed up any further."

"If you want to check it out, go ahead," said Fred. "Whether there's a case or not, we'll have plenty to do in fixing the show."

"But what about the actors?" asked Shaggy.

"Stop! Don't move," said Van Ghoul. "That chin! That nose!"

He pointed to Shaggy and Scooby.

"You shall be Friar Gabriello Serra, and you shall be his donkey Porto."

"Wow. A donkey!" said Scooby,

"I should be able to rebuild the set," said Fred.

"And I can make the costumes," said Daphne.

"And I'll finish writing the play," said Velma.

"Oh, I love it," said Van Ghoul. "It's so cliche!"

* * *

Meanwhile, the Coolsville gang began their investigation.

"Who should we talk to first?" asked Cassidy. "Mayor Nettles? She asked Van Ghoul to take over the play, so she must know the whole story."

"Her information is second-hand," said Dace. "I think we should talk to an eyewitness, like LeFranc or Doogle MGuiness."

"Let's try Doogle first, since we know where he lives from the Hebediah Grimm case," said Anne.

They drove to Doogle's house and found him there, in hiding.

"I'm embarrassed to be seen in public after that fiasco," said the young actor. "I've been attacked by a ghost before, but never upstaged by one. It's traumatic."

"So, like, there was a ghost?" asked Norville.

"The mummy of Friar Serra came to life and attacked us. He said that anyone who dares tell his story is doomed."

"Rummy!" said Scoobert. "Roh-oh."

"The mummy came to life, you say, so the mummy was already there?" asked Dace.

"Yes, along with all sorts of props from the Burlington Library, which were supposed to add historical realism. I fail to see how having his mummy onstage would enhance my performance as the living Friar Serra, but what do librarians know about the thespian arts?"

"Where's Mr. Lefranc?" asked Frederick. "We'd like to speak to him, too."

"Who knows? He disappeared," said Doogle. Why do you want him?"

"He knew about the mummy in advance, so it's possible he staged the attack for some reason," said Cassidy.

"I doubt he staged that. The mummy bit off his wig," said Doogle.

"Rit off ris rig?" asked Scoobert.

"Like, you're probably right," said Norville. "He wouldn't make himself look ridiculous."

"If you're going back to the theater soon, would you do me a favor? I want to get my costume back. It was custom-made to hide my inherited buttocks dysplasia," said Doogle.

"We'll see what we can do," said Anne. "I'm sure your replacement will be getting a new costume of his own."

"Replacement?" asked Doogle.

"We're helping Mr. Van Ghoul put on the play without you," said Frederick.

"I am the finest actor in Crystal Cove! I cannot be replaced! If you do this play, you're doomed," said Doogle. "Now get out."

He shoved them out and slammed the door behind them.

"Anyway, we have valuable information," said Frederick. "Let's head back to the theater and prepare our traps before the mummy ghost attacks again."

"Rummy rhost," moaned Scoobert.

"Like, that's twice as much monster," said Norville.

* * *

Velma was down below the stage with a flashlight, looking in the crates from Burlington Library for information about the life of Friar Serra and Porto. She heard a hiss and felt something move behind her.

"Huh?" she said, looking at an empty glass casket. "That's weird."

Another ghastly hiss made her turn around. "Hello? Anybody there?"

Moving forward to investigate, Velma tripped and her glasses fell off. When she got them on again she was face to face with the Mummy of Friar Sera, glowing green in the dark. It roared at her as she tried to back away.

She ran for the stairs with the Mummy close behind. Just as she had almost reached the top, it grabbed her by one leg. She was kicking herself free when the stairs suddenly flattened out into a slide, depositing both her and the monster into a net which had sprung up at the bottom of the stairs.

"Hey Velma," Fred called out. "What do you think of that one? I took what the other Fred said to heart about a possible monster case, so I started building traps into the stage as I repaired it. You can never be too prepared."

"Get me out!" Velma called. "I'm stuck in here with the monster!"

By this time the others (who had been watching old Van Ghoul movies to learn his acting techniques) heard the noise and rushed down to see what was going on. Shaggy and Scooby slipped on the slide and crashed down on top of the Mummy Ghost, luckily also tearing Velma free.

Fred pushed a button and the stairs straightened out again. "Now we'll see who this ghostly monk really is."

"George Avocados?" everyone chorused after the mask was removed.

"That's AvOC- Aw, forget it. That's right, it's me."

* * *

With the criminal case out of the way, rehearsals proceeded quickly.

Shaggy was reciting:

"Everybody, listen to me.  
The city, she is, like, uh, falling into the sea.  
Come with us if you want to live."

"Uh, I'm a donkey?" said Scooby.

The Ghost of Friar Serra burst up through the floor and flew at them. "You must not evoke the memory of Nibiru! The telling of the story must never be heard! He will feed on it. Nibiru will grow stronger, and you will never be able to stop him!"

The ghost grabbed Velma, flew up into the air with her, and dropped her, but Fred caught her. Then the ghost circled around and came after Van Ghoul. Fred turned on the bright stage lights and the ghost faded away, still shrieking about Nibiru.

"A second fake ghost?" asked Velma.

"This might be a real one. It mentioned Nibiru, which nobody knows about but us," said Dace.

"And Professor Pericles, since we heard it in his underwater laboratory," said Daphne. "Maybe it's him."

"Very not good, since he could easily put the entire audience in danger," said Dace. "I suggest we change to a different play."

"We can't back down under threats," said Fred.

"Yeah, we can," said Shaggy.

"Reah," said Scooby and Scoobert together.

"Well, I did have an idea for another play," said Velma. "The founding of the Benevolent Society of Mystery by Oswald P. Burlington."

"Where would we get actors for a whole new production at the last minute?" asked Van Ghoul.

"It's a mystery solving team that was a lot like us. There are parts for everyone: Fred as Burlington (with Frederick as a back-up), Daphne as Marianne Blanchard, Shaggy as Scotty O'Rourke, and myself as Abigail Gluck."

"Oh no, Abigail Gluck," said Shaggy, remembering.

"Rhat about me?" asked Scooby.

"You can be Mr. Peaches, the friendly talking orangutan," said Velma. "Just say his name with a stutter."

"Ruh-ruh-ruh-Reaches," said Scoobert.

"Like that," said Velma.

* * *

The new play went well. The critic Valdesh Helgenjew panned it for being absurd, but not absurd enough. All but Van Ghoul shrugged that off because the audience enjoyed it.

After the show, the ghost of Friar Serra appeared to them again and told them the true story of the destruction of Crystal Cove, how the donkey Porto was corrupted by an Evil Entity, so that he blew up the town with kegs of gunpowder, then fled into the swamps where he fell prey to alligators.

"Heed the warning of the alligators!" the ghost said, fading away. "The dog dies!"

Scooby gulped. "The dog dies? Is he talking about me?"

"Or raybe re," said Scoobert.


	22. UF Foes

The two gangs were in their headquarters at City Hall, trying to get new clues from the mysterious Planespheric Disk with the reader that Velma had built.

Velma said, "If each of the pieces reveals a location, then all of the pieces together should show us where the treasure is."

"Jeepers! It could be a cache of diamonds!" said Daphne.

"In a gold trap!" said Fred.

"Covered in hot fudge!" said Scooby.

"Like, wrapped in a burrito!" said Shaggy.

"What would be your opinion, Nova?" Scooby asked, but she only scratched herself in reply because she wasn't a talking dog.

"Guys, don't get carried away about the treasure," said Cassidy Williams. "That's what corrupted and destroyed the old Mystery Incorporated."

"You don't really believe it's cursed, do you?" asked Dace (the other Velma).

"Cursed or not, over the years every mystery-solving group that got involved with it has come to a bad end," said Cassidy. "It nearly happened to you. If the other-dimension team hadn't come in to help you, who knows if you could ever have pulled yourselves back together?"

"Re would have," said Scooby-Doo. "I never gave up hope."

Casssidy nodded. "Supposedly as long as the talking animal of the group stays pure, there's hope. Our Professor Pericles was rotten from the start. He plotted with Abigail Gluck to get the treasure long before he met us."

On Velma's player, the pieces magically floated and rearranged themselves.

"Jinkies, look at this, gang," said Velma.

"Senor P. Llave," read Anne (the other Daphne).

"Like, what kind of name is that?" asked Norville (the other Shaggy).

The name disappeared and a line of numbers appeared in its place.

"Like, what's with the numbers?" asked Shaggy.

"Maybe the numbers are coordinates. This could be the ultimate treasure destination," said Fred.

"It could be anything," said Fredrick (the other Fred).

Just then, Sheriff Stone burst into the room. "You have to help me!"

"Sheriff? What's wrong?" asked Daphne.

"We're in the middle of a galactic war, and the earth is the prize!" said Stone.

* * *

They went with him back to police headquarters, where he told a tale of being abducted when he was fourteen years old.

"It was an E.B.E.," Stone said.

"Ran rebe?" asked Scoobert (the other Scooby).

"No, an E.B. E. - an extraterrestrial biological entity, an alien being from far beyond the stars... a gray," said Stone.

"A gray what?" asked Fred.

"A gray alien! You know, those dinky, little bodies; great, big heads; smooth, hairless skin. Aren't you paying attention?"

"I met one of them once," said Norville. "But she was, like, more blue-gray and a little bit transparent. And not dinky, about as tall as me."

"What?" said Velma. "Don't encourage the Sheriff with silly stories, Norville."

"It's true," said Frederick. "We all saw her."

"Crystal," Norville sighed. "I fell in love with her when she was, like, in human disguise."

"Rand I roved Ramber," said Scoobert.

"Her dog Amber, who turned out to be a lizard-like alien in disguise," explained Anne.

"A reptoid!" said Stone. "It just confirms what I found out by reading conspiracy blogs. There are reptile beings living in Hollow Earth."

"Oh brother," said Velma. "I'm peeved that you out-of-towners keep bringing up all this weird stuff."

"Says a person who gets computer messages from a device made of metal plates hundreds of years old," said Dace.

"Yet another old girlfriend," said Cassidy. "You're quite the ladies' man, Norville."

"Nothing ever came of it," said Norville. "Like, it was the ultimate long-distance relationship. Crystal went back home to her own planet and I never saw her again."

"Ramber reither," said Scoobert.

"We're going to be even further apart, when this case is over and you return to your home dimension," said Cassidy.

"Zoinks!" said Norville. "That's right."

Dace said, "Maybe we could consider trading Shaggys. Shaggy, you could go back with me, and ours could stay with the gang here."

"You and our Shaggy are together?" Daphne asked in surprise.

Dace smiled and nodded.

"I want my Rhaggy," said Scooby-Doo. "And I want to stay with Nova."

"Watch out, Dace," said Velma. "Dog issues could wreck your relationship."

"Like, it's something to think about," said Shaggy. "You and Nova could come with me, Scoob."

"You need to focus on my problems, not your romances," said Stone. "As I was trying to say, they took me to their saucer and put a chip in my nasal cavity so they could track me and steal my memories and make me do awful things."

"What kinds of awful things?" Daphne asked.

Stone said, "Awful things! Awful!" He pounded on the desk hysterically.

"Like, all right. All right. We get it," said Shaggy.

"Awful things," said Scooby-Doo.

"Have you told anyone else about this, like maybe a psychiatrist?" asked Velma.

Stone said, "You don't believe me? Well, take a look at this."

He showed them a picture on his cell phone. It showed a kiosk at the Mall.

"You were abducted by a teeth-whitening kiosk?" asked Daphne.

"What?" said Stone. "Oh, that little, gray beast, he was right there! They're so crafty. I need your help! I'm obviously desperate, which I why I came to eight child detectives, a DJ, and two talking dogs for help."

* * *

They went to Crystal Cove Mall at the Sheriff's insistence, to look clues about aliens.

"Now, we must be vigilant," said Stone. "They're very advanced."

"Hang on, gang. Check out that store," said Frederick.

There were security guards gathered around a store with a broken window.

Velma suggested the Sheriff introduce himself to them. With a legitimate police officer along they had no trouble getting to see the security camera footage, which showed a small figure moving around.

"Ooh! It's a gray. Hide me," said Sheriff Stone.

"I don't know, Sheriff. It kind of looks like a kid in a sweatshirt," said Daphne.

"There's another one. Holy battle beyond the stars, it's a Nordic alien!" said Stone.

Velma said dryly, "Or... a woman holding a newspaper in front of her face."

"Don't be fooled by their Nordic good looks and peaceful demeanors, girlie." said Stone.

"Then, like, what's that?" asked Norville, pointing to another shadowy figure.

"A lutoid, shape shifters from Alpha Draconis. We're being invaded from all sides!" said Stone.

* * *

On the way back from the mall, they were driving through a cornfield at night.

Stone said, "While some call the Nordic aliens our space brothers, the less nit-witted among us, by which I mean me, know why they're really here, and that is to conquer and enslave us."

"Hold on, the aliens we met were cool and nice," said Norville. "They just came to check out our planet for their government."

"So they could make the decision about whether to invade us or not," said the Sheriff.

"Oh, for the love of..." Velma started to say.

A bright light shone on the Mystery Machine. At the same time, there were strange interference noises on the radio. Then the Mystery Machine stopped and Fred couldn't re-start it. Electrical overloads on nearby power lines sent out purple sparks.

"Gang, prepare yourselves," said Fred. "I think we're about to be..."

"Rabducted!" said Scoobert.

Everyone prepared to run into the cornfield, but Cassidy held up a hand.

"Stop," said Cassidy. "If something's trying to attack us, we'll stand and fight."

"But we always run," said Scooby.

"Not this time," said Cassidy.

"You're right," said Stone. "If this is where Sheriff Bronson Stone makes his last stand, then so be it. You can't have me, you alien freaks!"

Stone pulled out his taser gun and accidentally shot himself in the foot. "Waah!"

Cassidy pulled out a handful of music discs and threw a volley of them like shurikens up at the light.

There was a popping sound and a hissing noise, and then a large object came crashing down beside the van.

"Property of U.S. Army," Dace read. "It's a weather balloon!"

"I knew it," said Velma. "We're spooking ourselves with coincidences."

"What about the way the Mystery Machine went on the fritz?" asked Fred.

"Power surges can have natural causes," said Dace. "We'll call the power company and find out."

"The strange figures at the mall?" asked Daphne.

"Probably just criminals in disguise, as usual," said Anne.

"What about my abductions?" asked Stone. "You can't explain those."

"I know someone who can help us, although I'm sure I'm going to regret asking her," said Velma.

* * *

They met with Velma's mother, Angie Dinkley, at the "Broken Spine" bookstore and cafe.

"Alien invasion?" asked Angie, giving Velma a big hug. "Oh, sweetie, you have no idea how happy this makes me. You finally believe."

"I told you I was going to regret this," said Velma.

Angie led them down into a basement room full of "alien" stuff.

"Velma has always poo-pooed my little hobby," said Angie.

"Obsession," said Velma.

"But I knew she'd come around some day," said Angie.

"I'm not actually convinced," said Velma. "But the Sheriff has had some disturbing memories of alien abductions, and I remembered you know hypnotic techniques that might help us uncover more information."

Angie pointed to Stone. "Sheriff, you are obviously the key to everything. The item in your nasal cavity is both controlling you and repressing your memories."

"I knew it! Is that bad?" asked Stone.

Hearing his trigger word, Norville stiffened and looked more confident.

Angie said, "Very, but as I have been trained by Dr. Vieber, the master of abduction regression hypnosis, I believe I can help. Please raise your right hand, dear."

She swung a shiny watch back and forth in front of the Sheriff. Scooby, Scoobert, and Shaggy watched it too.

"Now, don't be frightened, Sheriff. I won't make you quack like a duck or flap your arms."

Scooby, Scoobert, and Shaggy flapped their arms and quacked.

Norville said, "I'm not a duck. I'm invincible."

Angie snapped her fingers, and Shaggy and the dogs snapped out of it. (It had no effect on Norville.)

"So susceptible," said Angie. "Curious the aliens didn't abduct the two of you."

She continued waving the watch at Stone. "Now, Sheriff, keep your eyes on the watch. Breathe deeply in and out."

Shaggy and the dogs smelled Stone's breath.

"Aggh. Yuck," said Scooby.

"Like, you said it, bud. Eww," said Shaggy.

"Now dear, tell me about the light," said Angie.

Stone said "They come to me over the years. I knew I'd been repeatedly probed, but I had no memory of it. Then one night..."

Stone told of a bright light and a gray coming in and trapping him in a beam of light. He said that the aliens replaced the chip in his nose with something even bigger.

"Did they say anything?" asked Angie. "Aliens usually give away their odious intentions while their victim is helpless on the table."

"Well, they said... they said my brain will keep the plans safe," said Stone.

"What plans?" asked Angie.

"The plans that will take them back home," said Stone. He snapped out of hypnosis and reacted in horror. "The aliens need my brain! They're gonna steal my brain!"

"Must not be very complicated plans," said Velma.

A crashing sound came from upstairs in the museum. They all ran up to look.

"The Space Kook is missing," said Daphne.

"No, it's not," said Shaggy. "Like, I think it's right over there."

There was someone in the armored Space Kook suit, a blonde, Nordic-looking woman wearing eye-concealing goggles.

"Look out!" said Scoobert.

"Get her before she gets away!" said Fred.

Using the strength of her powered armor, the "Kook" threw down a big tube of green goo representing a Slime Monster, which went all over the floor.

"After her," called Frederick.

They charged, and everyone lost their footing on the slippery goo. All except super-confident Norville and Cassidy Williams, that is. They didn't lose their balance at all, as expertly sliding across the floor and slamming into the armored figure. Cassidy found a power connection and ripped it loose, immobilizing the armor and stopping the villain in her tracks.

Outside, there was the sound a of a motor being started.

"More of them in a getaway car!" said Cassidy.

"They won't escape from us," said Norville confidently.

Cassidy and Norville raced to the car, a Winnebago, and pulled out two more alien-costumed people, a tall "Reptoid" one from the driver's seat and a short "Gray" one from the passenger side. Cassidy produced plastic handcuff strips and bound their hands behind their backs.

All the others came outside, dragging along the Space Kook.

"Aliens drive Winnebagos?" asked Velma.

"Like I said, dear, they've been here a long, long time," said Angie.

"They want my brain," said Stone. "They nearly got my brain. Don't get too close. They still might have some alien brain-stealing items ready to deploy."

"That might be true if they were really aliens," said Dace. "But they are, in fact, Traveler O'Flaherty, Sheila O'Flaherty, and Conor O'Flaherty."

Dace unmasked the villains, revealing two men and one woman.

"Usually, we all recognize the villain and shout out his name in unison," said Fred.

"Yeah, Dace. Mind clueing us in?" asked Daphne.

"I know all the criminals in Crystal Cove, and these jerks aren't ringing a bell," said Stone.

"I recognized them from the wanted poster you have hanging on the wall in your office," said Dace.

"Oh, please," said Stone. "Nobody ever pays attention to those. What is this, the Old West?"

Traveler O'Flaherty said, in a thick Irish accent, "Were that it were, boyo. Then perhaps we could've earned an honest living."

He went on to explain how he turned to thievery as a poor young man, and how his children showed a talent for the family business as well. When their faces became known on wanted posters all over the place, they started disguising themselves as aliens to commit their thefts.

"We'd have gotten away with this valuable high-tech suit, too, if it weren't for you frittering snappers."

All looked blank.

"Meddling kids!" said Traveler.

"But I know what I saw- the aliens, my nose chip," said Stone.

"Actually, sheriff, during your hypnotic regression, Shaggy and Scooby smelled something on your breath," said Velma.

"Bad clams," said Shaggy and Scooby in unison.

At this, Norville snapped out of his confident trance. "Zoinks, that was dangerous!"

"The clams induced a hallucination that made everything seem real," said Velma.

"So I wasn't repeatedly abducted and experimented on by aliens?" asked Stone.

"Doesn't seem so, Sheriff," said Fred.

"Then I'm no longer a victim, and you, O'Flaherty family, are under arrest for thievery and impersonation of invaders from outer space, and you're going away for a long, long time."

After the Sherrif called in a police car and transported his prisoners to jail, Daphne said, "We still have one big mystery to solve - the Planispheric Disk."

"I took the liberty of punching in the coordinates into the Mystery Machine's GPS. Gang, we're heading for Gatorsburg," said Fred.

* * *

At the cemetery in Gatorsburg, they found a grave marked "Senor Primero Llave." Scooby and Scoobert dug it up, revealing a coffin with the picture of an alligator on the top. They opened it.

"It's empty," said Daphne

"Not quite," said Velma, pulling out an old flintlock pistol.

"Like, what does an old gun have to do with a key?" asked Shaggy.

"No idea, Shag, but we're not gonna figure it out here," said Fred.

They went back to their headquarters, and found City Hall on fire.

"What happened?" Daphne asked one of the fire fighters.

"No idea," said the fireman. "It's a mystery. Good thing nobody was inside. Somebody could've gotten really hurt."

Up on the roof, Fred's parents were watching, using their invisibility suits to stay undetected.


	23. The Bulls and the Bees

Scooby-Doo was dining out with Nova at The Bloody Stake.

"Here you go," said the bored food server that Shaggy and Scooby had nicknamed the Vampire Waitress. "This is the last plate of our world famous Floor Scraps From the Grave. Enjoy."

Scooby pushed the plate to Nova. "Here, Nova, my love. I want you to have the first bite."

Nova took a bite of old cabbage.

Scooby giggled and said, "I just love the way you consume."

At a nearby table, the two Mystery Incorporated gangs were also dining out. Scoobert (the other Scooby) watched the canine couple intently and gave a low, jealous moan.

Norville (the other Shaggy), reached down and rubbed Scoobert behind the ears. "I know it's hard, ol' buddy. But this is, like, his world. He can offer her a steady relationship because he won't have to leave when it's over."

"Rike rou rand Rassidy?" asked Scoobert. "Ror rother Rhaggy rand rour Relma?"

"Cassidy and I aren't in a love triangle," said Norville. "Neither are the other Shaggy and Velma, I mean our Dace. Even if it's short-term, we can handle it... I hope."

The others weren't listening to the exchange. They were looking over the antique pistol they had found in a fake grave in Gatorsburg.

"So, like, I don't understand," said Shaggy. "The Planispheric Disk led us to dig up this crazy old flintlock. Does that mean this is the treasure?"

"No," said Velma. "It might be worth a little something as an antique, but the cursed treasure of Crystal Cove is supposed to be immense beyond all imagining."

"Like love," said Daphne with a sigh.

"Here's your Cheese Platter of the Forever Undead," said the Vampire Waitress. "It's all we had left."

Anne (the other Daphne) sniffed the cheese. "Excuse me, but this Port Salut is not from Brittany. And this Cotswold Double Gloucester is well past its prime."

"Sorry, but we're out of food," said the Vampire Waitress. "In fact, we're down to selling food from the dumpsters of other restaurants."

"What? Why?" asked Dace.

"Another of the local farms has been mysteriously destroyed. The fifth this week. It's really messing with our food deliveries," said the Vampire Waitress.

"Mysteriously destroyed?" asked Fred.

"We need to check this out," said Frederick (the other Fred). "Do you know of a local farm where we can ask questions?"

"Like, Scoob knows a farm," said Shaggy with a shudder. "Where my parents sent him when we were split up."

"Zoinks!" said Norville. "I was, like, a decoy when we rescued your Scooby from there."

Cassidy Williams said, "They may already be gone. Let's split into two groups. I know a gathering place for farmers where we could try for some answers."

"Sounds good," said Frederick. "Our Mystery Inc. will cover Cassidy's lead while you check out the farm."

"It will keep our Scoobert from having to watch Nova with his rival," said Norville in a quiet voice to Cassidy.

"Just what I was thinking," Cassidy whispered back.

* * *

The local gang drove up to the farm in the local Mystery Machine. They found the farmer and his wife packing suitcases onto a tractor. The farmhouse and barns were completely gone.

"You!" said the farmer when he saw Scooby.

"Farmer," Scooby growled back.

"Dog," said the farmer.

"Lock up any innocent animals lately?" asked Scooby.

"Like, OK, you two, we know you've got history, but go easy on the animosity there," said Shaggy. "Remember, your girlfriend is watching, Scoob."

"You're right," said Scooby. "Sorry, Nova."

Nova was rolling on her back on the ground.

"Ahh. I just love the way she rolls in the dirt," said Scooby.

"Excuse me, Mr. farmer. What happened to your farm?" asked Daphne.

The farmer spat on the ground. "Farm? I ain't got no farm. It's gone, all of it. That horrible herd ate everything except the silo."

The farmer looked up at the silo's ladder, where his wife was still clinging. "Martha, we are leaving."

"Like, did I just heard you say hear?" asked Shaggy. "I mean, uh, huh ha ha, hear you say herd?"

"Herd of what?" asked Fred.

The farmer said, "Skull cattle. Ugliest darn things."

"Guys, look at these weird hoof prints," said Velma. "They don't make any sense."

"If you really want to get all nosy about it, you should talk to the other farmers in the area. The herd paid them a visit, too," said the farmer as he drove away with his wife over his shoulder.

* * *

Meanwhile, the extra-dimensional gang was visiting "The Farmer's Barrel of Crackerness," a local eatery where farmers hung out.

"So you're saying that this herd of skull cattle destroyed your farms?" asked Frederick.

"What's the matter with you? You got potatoes in your ears, huh?" asked a woman farmer.

"Nope," said Frederick. "But that reminds me of a band I once heard of, the Def Potato."

"Please, go on," said Dace.

"Like a plague of locusts they was. Coming out of the night, they devoured everything in their path."

"I reckon she's right," said another farmer.

Scoobert raised his paw. "Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! Ooh!"

"Yeah, dog? You've got a question?" asked the farmer.

"He wants something to eat," said Norville. "Like, so do I."

"We got crackers... and crackers," said the farmer.

"Anything else to add a little flavor?" asked Norville.

"We found this here sweet cheesy stuff on the road after them skull cattle went by," said the farmer.

The farmer plunked down a large barrel of a sticky yellow substance on their table.

"Road kill sweet cheese? That is just disgusting," said Dace.

"Mmm," said Norville, scooping some onto a cracker. "Speak for yourself. It's sweet cheese-errific."

Anne sniffed it. "It's some kind of aged honey cheese."

"Can you give us any other details, any other clues?" asked Dace.

"Yeah. Just before that horrible herd of skull cattle attacked, the ground started to..." the farmer woman gave a wheeze. "Shake."

The ground beneath the restaurant began to shake, sending up a cloud of dust from the floor. The patrons all muttered in fear.

"Like, I hope this is a coincidence!" said Norville.

"I don't think so," said Frederick.

"Come on!" said Cassidy.

When they all got outside, they saw the ghost cattle stampeding towards them.

"It's the horrible herd!" yelled Norville.

"Time to go," said Anne.

They jumped into the Mystery Machine and Frederick gunned it down the road, while the farmers fled in tractors. The horrible herd came after them after taking only a moment to destroy the restaurant.

"Freddy, drive faster," said Anne. "Faster!"

The monster cattle were swiftly gaining on them, and began to bite at the sides of the van.

"Everybody hang on," said Frederick. "Daph, hit the boosters!"

Anne did, and rocket boosters propelled the Mystery Machine safely away.

* * *

The two mystery gangs met up and compared notes at the Rogers' family mansion.

Everyone gathered around Velma and her computer.

"I mapped all the attacks on all the farms in the area, and look, they create an outline of a magnifying glass just like the one the old Mystery Incorporated used as their symbol," said Velma. "It's centered around Destroido."

"Cute little moo cows turned into horrible monsters. There's only one mind evil enough to come up with something like that," said Daphne.

"Professor Pericles," everyone chorused.

"Velma, is there anyway we can spy on the old Mystery Incorporated?" asked Daphe. "Didn't you say Hot Dog Water hooked us up somehow at Destroido?"

"I almost forgot," said Velma. "Marcie left us a back door into the Destroido security system when she was there stealing the Planispheric Disk pieces."

Velma typed commands into the computer and an image from a security camers came up on the screen. They could see Ricky Owens, the owner of Destroido, and the evil parrot, Professor Pericles. Fred's parents, Brad and Judy Chiles, were there also.

"Can you get more volume?" asked Fred.

"You have gone too far this time, Pericles," said Ricky Owens.

He complained of the millions it was costing his company, as well as the lives of 28 of his best scientists.

There was a scream in the background.

"Make that 29," said Ricky.

"Ricky, one cannot make a genius omelet without breaking a few worthless eggs," said Pericles. "Right, Brad and Judy?"

"You said it, Professor Pericles," said Judy. "He's a genius, right, Brad?"

"He sure is, Judy," said Brad. "He sure is."

"And make no mistake, Ricky, I will break any egg that gets in my way, perhaps even you," said Pericles.

Pericles stared into space as he visualized his evil plan.

"My herd of skull cattle is perfect in every way. I have crossbred cows, piranhas, and bees to create the ultimate monsters. And I'm their master. My precious creations exist for one purpose- to devour Crystal Cove. My herd of male drones shall level this city to the ground, leaving nowhere for the Mystery Kinder to hide the Planispheric Disk."

'Like, he's gonna destroy Crystal Cove," said Shaggy.

"Come on, gang," said Fred. "We have to warn the town."

"That's good, said Cassidy, "But we need to do more. I have an idea how we could destroy these monsters. But we have to lure them into the ocean for it to work."

"How can we do that?" asked Anne.

"Pericles called them male drones," said Dace. "So they must have a queen in their hive at Destroido. If we capture her, they'll chase after us."

"And like, tear us to bits," said Shaggy.

"Not if we can get into the air," said Velma. "They can't fly."

"The Mayor's office has a helicopter," said Fred. "It used to belong to my fake dad."

"Mayor Nettles is an expert pilot," said Cassidy. "She was in the Air Force and flew with the Black Hawks."

"How did you know that?" asked Dace.

"As a former agent for Mr. E, I've been trained to learn everything I can about the town's leaders," said Cassidy.

"All right," said Fred. "The Crystal Cove gang will warn the mayor and get a helicopter operation going to capture the queen."

Frederick said, "The Coolsville gang and Cassidy will prepare a trap near the seaside cliffs to the north. You can lead them over the cliffs using the queen, and we'll take it from there."

* * *

The Coolsville Mystery Inc. was waiting by the seaside, as planned.

"Here they come," said Frederick, looking through a pair of binoculars. "They have the queen in a net, and the herd is following."

"Good," said Cassidy. "Our rocket launcher is ready to fire at them once they all drop into the ocean."

"Wait a second, something's wrong!" said Frederick. "Someone just fired a missile at them. The tail of the helicopter got hit!"

"Pericles!" said Anne.

"Can they stay in the air?" asked Dace.

"They're holding on, just barely. Oh no! Nova fell out. Shaggy, Scooby, and Velma formed a chain to hold onto her. They have her. No! She dropped!"

"Rova!" said Scoobert. He took off at a run towards where Nova had fallen.

"Scoob, no! You're heading right into the herd!" called Norville after him.

When Norville ran after Scoobert, Cassidy called out after him, "Bad!"

Activating his fearless state was all Cassidy could do for the moment, because the helicopter was wobbling toward the ocean, getting ready to drop the queen cow.

The queen was cut loose, and the horrible herd plunged off the cliff after her. Once they were all in the water, Cassidy fired the rocket. A red stain spread on the water, and then there was a thrashing and the water exploded with bubbles as if it were boiling.

"What was in that rocket?" asked Anne.

"Beef blood," said Cassidy. "They're part piranha and part cow. The scent of blood in the water has triggered their natural predator instincts against each other. They're in a feeding frenzy."

"I feel a little sorry for those skull cattle," said Anne. "It's not their fault they're horrible genetically engineered mutations."

"Looks like they've mostly destroyed each other," said Dace. "I hope enough don't survive to become unnatural super predators in the ecosystem."

"They won't last long," said Cassidy. "They've lost most of their herd and their honey supply."

By this time the other team had landed and observed the success of the trap.

"You did it, kids!" said Sheriff Stone.

"You saved the town," said Mayor Nettles.

"Now we have to find Nova!" Scooby said.

"And Norville and Scoobert," said Frederick. "They ran to try to save her."

The whole group ran back along the path of the herd, looking for survivors of the stampede. They found Norville, Scoobert, and Nova up on a rock ledge above the main path of destruction.

"How's Nova?" asked Scooby.

"She's all right, only a little bruised. No thanks to you," answered Norville in his fearless mode. "I saw Scoobert run out into the middle of the herd, pick her up, and push her up onto this ledge. By the time I got to him, he'd been trampled by the monsters."

"No!" said everyone together.

"How is he?" asked Daphne.

"Alive, but unconscious," said Norville. "We have to get him to the hospital, like, stat!"


	24. The Ska's the Limit

Scooby-Doo, Nova, and Shaggy Rogers were watching a live midnight music interview on TV. It wasn't much good, but it helped to take their minds off the tense and unhappy mood that had pervaded everyone since the accident that left Scoobert, the other world's Scooby-Doo, in a coma at the Crystal Cove Hospital.

"Krissy Kristy here with your music news report. Hola! I'm standing on the very spot where one-hit wonders Rude Boy and the Ska-tastics totally ate it thirty years ago in a gnarly plane crash." She held up a picture. "See? That's them, like, from before they were dead."

Krissy questioned their manager, Ian Hope, about the crash, which he said was caused by a voodoo curse. But before he finished speaking, the band's zombies came up from below, pulling Krissy beneath the ground and carrying off Ian.

Trembling with shock, Shaggy called the others.

* * *

Both gangs gathered at his house early the next morning to discuss the situation.

"A band that disappears and comes back as monsters?" said Dace, the other Velma. "It reminds me of our case at Vampire Rock, in Australia."

"Yeah, I remember that case," said Frederick, the other Fred. "The Wildwind band faked being turned into monsters so they could win a rock contest and make a comeback."

"Like, we were in Australia?" asked Norville, the other Shaggy. "We've been so many places I can't remember them all."

"Of course we were," said Anne, the other Daphne. "Don't you remember performing on stage with the Hex Girls?"

"What? You know the Hex Girls?" said Velma. "My favorite band! You even performed with them?"

"I've performed with the Hex Girls," said Daphne. "They made me a temporary member, Crush."

"Please don't remind me of that break-up song you sang," said Fred. "But it's all right now, since we're friends again."

"Just friends," said Daphne with a trace of sadness.

"Our world's version is probably very different," said Dace. "A goth rock band: Thorn, Luna, and Dusk. We met them in Thorn's home town of Oakhaven, Massachusetts, and they helped us save the world from a witch's ghost."

"Then there were two vampire cases, one in Australia and one at a castle in Transylvania," said Frederick.

"They sound a lot like ours, except we saved them from a Phantom who turned out to be their songwriter," said Fred.

"They're back in town, but not for a public concert," said Velma. "They're performing at a private party tonight on a rich sheikh's yacht."

Shaggy said, "So, what about this zombie deal? Like, does every bit of scary news have to be followed up by an immediate 'Let's go investigate'?"

"Yes," chorused the other members of his team.

"I know a music store where we could get some background on the band," said Velma.

"Like, you all go," said Norville. "I have to go back to the hospital to check on Scoobert."

"Any change?" asked Scooby-Doo sympathetically.

"No, and I'm worried," said Norville. "He's never been hurt this badly before."

"Maybe working on the case would help you to take your mind off things," said Daphne.

"I'm not happy working with you Crystal Covers right now," said Norville. "Scoobert got hurt saving Nova, because you guys, like, totally messed up and dropped her."

"Nobody could have predicted the rocket launcher attack," said Fred.

"That's not your only foul-up. Face it, we've been pulling the fat out of the fire for you over and over since we got here," said Norville.

"That's not fair," said Velma. "We've worked together as a team."

Cassidy Williams said, "Norville, it seems like you're still under hypnotic suggestion. You're not afraid of anything, even hurting people's feelings. That's bad."

Norville blinked as he heard his trigger word, but his expression remained unchanged. "I've been stuck like this ever since my dog got hurt."

* * *

At the music store "Grooves from the Grave," the two mystery gangs (less Norville) got the back-story on Rude Boy and his band from the proprietor, Martha Quinn.

"I have every record they ever released right here in the store," said Martha. "Of course, they only released one. Their biggest and only hit, Graveyard Ska, Inc."

As she played it, the gangs started tapping their feet.

"Jinkies," said Velma. "That's catchy."

"Hang on," said Martha. "I've prepared a slide show on every music group from the last 60 years."

She told them of the band's one-hit success, and how Rude Boy turned to voodoo to advance his career, casting love spells on the audience, curses on other bands, and even an enchantment of never-ending pain on a synthesizer.

"Rude Boy always said he would come back from the grave. And now it looks like he has," said Martha.

"Zoinks! Doesn't anybody ever stay dead around here?" asked Shaggy.

Scooby moaned.

* * *

That evening, they got a call from City Hall.

"There's been an attack by the Rude Boy zombies at the Tiki Tub," said Mayor Nettles over the phone. "Trini Lee, the singer, was pulled underground. All the people who heard the music from the zombie band are in a trance and they can't stop dancing. Please go over to the hospital and check out the situation for me."

They drove to the hospital, where a flood of ambulances was pulling in.

"I haven't seen this many ambulances since that time Scooby thought he had the mange," said Fred.

"Well, if Mayor Nettles called us down here, it must be really bad," said Daphne.

"Very bad," said Velma.

Scooby-Doo left the others to go check on his counterpart. "I'll catch up with you guys later."

They visited the ward of the music victims, finding them still dancing, with some collapsing in exhaustion.

"That dance is called skanking," said Daphne. "It's how you're meant to dance to ska music. And you said dance class was a waste of time."

"Oy," said Velma.

The doctor gave a grim prognosis: "if we can't find a cure within 24 hours, they will dance themselves into a permanent cataleptic state. They will become zombies for the rest of their lives!"

"We need to prepare a musical defense," said Frederick. "We'll dig out our musical instruments from our Mystery Machine."

"You can all perform with instruments?" asked Daphne.

"Certainly," said Anne. "And we can all sing."

"Remember that vampire case in Louisiana when we all kept breaking into song?" asked Dace.

"What was that all about?" asked Fred.

"I don't know, it must have been something in the air," said Anne.

"Our gang's not all that musical," said Velma. "We should follow up by looking for clues at the graveyard where Rude Boy and the Ska-tastics are buried."

"Like, do we have to go to spooky places at night?" asked Shaggy.

"Why can't we go there tomorrow, after lunch?" asked Scooby-Doo, who had rejoined the group.

"Or never?" asked Shaggy,

"Guys, those poor dancing people can't wait until tomorrow! They're counting on us to save them," said Fred.

* * *

A quick investigation at the graveyard was aborted by a motorcycle-riding zombie attack, but the local gang did manage to rescue Ian Hope, who they found bound and gagged in the unearthed coffin of Rude Boy.

They returned to the music shop of Martha Quinn, where they questioned Ian Hope.

"Rude Boy? Rude Boy has come back from the grave," said Hope. "He's bringing ska back to life."

"Yeah, by turning people into dancing zombies," said Scooby.

"Mr. Hope, you were the Ska-tastics' manager," said Daphne. "You guys traveled everywhere together.

"How come you weren't on that plane with them when it crashed?" asked Velma.

"Um, I missed the plane because of-uh, a bizarre laundry accident. Yes," said Hope.

Martha Quinn showed her research on dancing plagues in past history, said to be caused by listening to cursed and evil music. She was interrupted by eerily compelling ska music.

The gang ran outside. The zombies had begun to play from a rooftop across the street.

"It's Rude Boy!" Fred shouted.

"Quick, cover your ears," said Velma.

The Rude Boy zombie picked up the microphone and shouted the hypnotic command: "Dance!"

Martha Quinn said, "We have to... fight this... musically. We need... Ultimate Power Chord."

Then the compulsion became too much for her, and she began to dance. So did Ian Hope, and almost everyone one the street. Mystery Inc., with excellent will-power born of their many adventures, was barely hanging on.

Fred said, "I'm fighting it, but I can't resist their catchy use of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues!"

Shaggy sent a quick text to the other group: "We need music defense downtown, stat!"

Norville texted back, "Need us 2 bail u out again? OK there ASAP."

"Shaggy, Scooby, why isn't it affecting you?" gasped Daphne.

"I'm a dog. Music is just noise to us," said Scooby.

"And, like, you've heard me sing. I'm totally tone deaf," said Shaggy.

The other Mystery Machine pulled up, and the Coolsville gang jumped out, with amplified instruments ready to go.

The zombies played:  
"We know that we will be mates forever.  
Step in with our crew, and the future's bright.  
We can't be beat if we stick together.  
Dance with us as we skank through the night."

The Coolsville gang fought back with:  
"Scooby Dooby Doo, where are you?  
We got some work to do now.  
Scooby Dooby Doo, where are you?  
We need some help from you now."

The zombies groaned as the 60's pop assaulted their ears, and their music temporarily faltered. People began to come out of their trances.

Norville threw down his guitar. "I don't have the heart to sing this. I know where our Scooby-Doo is: in the hospital, in a coma. Let's just go up there and attack those things mano a mano."

The zombies grinned and rallied with:  
"You're dead right, mate.  
Dead right, mate.  
Left, right, mate.  
Yeah, that's right, mate.  
You're dead right, mate..."

Even Norville, even in "bad" mode, was no match for the catchy music. All the other Mystery Inc. members were falling under the spell.

"Shaggy! Scooby! You're our only hope!" called Frederick.

"It's up to you to save the town! It's up to you to save... us!" said Velma.

Everyone but Shaggy and Scooby was dancing now. The two ran to get the only other musicians they knew – the Hex Girls.

* * *

The battle of the bands was over. The Hex Girls, supplemented by Shaggy and Scooby, had overpowered the ska band with rock and the Ultimate Power Chord.

Shaggy and Scooby were so excited they smashed the speakers and guitars like crazed rock stars.

"Umm, you can stop now," said Thorn. (It was their equipment, after all.)

"Now, let's see who's really behind the evil ska music," said Fred, unmasking the leader to reveal a famous but aged face. "Rude Boy is actually... Rude Boy?"

"You're alive!" said Anne. "But the plane crash..."

"Was an elaborate hoax, wasn't it, Mr. Rude Boy?" said Velma.

"Aye, you blighters got it in for me, right," said Rude Boy with an Australian accent. "But yeah, we faked the whole bloomin' thing. All I ever wanted to do was play ska and be super rich and super famous. Apparently, it just wasn't in the tarot cards. Maybe the fact that we only had one song had something to do with it. So me and me mates, the Ska-tastics here, we decided we'd fake our own deaths. Then, we could write the perfect song and return to take the music world by storm."

He went on to explain that they intended to be gone only a year, but it took them thirty years to write the perfect hypnotic song. But by then, ska wasn't popular, so they used the zombie gimmick to attract an audience.

"So in the end, desperate for success, Rude Boy and the Ska-tastics unleashed a dancing plague on the world using an inharmonic chord with special frequencies designed to induce post-hypnotic suggestion To sell their music," said Dace.

"Just as I thought, but didn't say," said Fred. "Dance them away, Sheriff."

The missing women, Krissy Kristy and Trini Lee, were found by Scooby, bound and gagged in a prop coffin.

"Like, you owe us an apology, Norville," said Shaggy. "We were the ones who pulled your fat from the fire this time."

"Yeah!" said Scooby.

"Well, sometimes it's an advantage to have no musical talent," said Norville. "You did good... this time."

* * *

Later that night, the Crystal Cove gang followed up a musical clue that appeared on one of the pieces of the Planespheric Disk, leading them to Skipper Shelton and the second key, a conquistador's helmet.

Norville returned to the hospital for a late visit, and found Scoobert still comatose.

"Scoob, things are getting weirder and weirder," said Norville. "Like, I can't explain them any more. It feels like something's going to happen, something bad."

Once again, his trigger word had no effect. But just then the monitor of Scoobert's vital signs flatlined. Norville was about to call for an emergency team when Scoobert sat up. Norville smiled. His pal was going to be all right...

"Nibiru," said Scoobert in a strange, feminine voice with no trace of a speech impediment. "Nibiru is coming."


	25. The Gluten Glutton

Rick Spartan was watching the Francilee Jackson cooking show.

"Well, howdy, y'all. It is such a pleasure cooking in front of a live studio audience here in beautiful Crystal Cove. Today we'll be cookin' up a batch of goodness I call Francilee Jackson's double-dip bacon and butter-breaded croissant snack. Mmm mmm."

"Now, a lot of you folks at home been askin' if I worry about my recipes aren't the healthiest. All I got to say is, I ain't no doctor, y'all."

There was the sound of canned laughter.

"While that's simmerin', we'll start prepping my dessert. I call it Francilee Jackson's bacon bread pie..."

A cloud of green smoke began to rise from the pot.

"Oh! Oh! Oh! Now, don't worry, y'all. If this happens at home, just throw in another bacon butter."

The towering cloud of smoke parted, revealing a gigantic red demon.

"No. No! Get back! Aah!"

The demon opened its mouth wide and swallowed Francilee whole. Then it threw the counter at the television camera, shutting it off.

"Danger, Cachinga," said Spartan. "Ready your spear. This is a job for Rick Spartan, academic of adventure."

"Oh, joy. A road trip," said Cachinga sarcastically as he sipped his ice-cream sundae.

* * *

In the living room of the Roger's mansion the two mystery gangs were trying to comfort Shaggy's counterpart, Norville.

"I'm worried about you, honey," said Cassidy Williams, who had become Norville's girlfriend after he helped her escape from killer robots at an underwater base. "You're not eating nearly as much as usual. Only two breakfasts."

"I don't feel good," said Norville. "Scoobert sat up in his hospital bed and spoke. He said 'Nibiru. Nibiru is coming' and then he went back into a coma."

"It's definitely something," said Fred. "He never clearly pronounces a word that doesn't start with an 'R'."

"And the more I research this Nibiru, the less I think I know," said Velma. "I borrowed this book from my mother, hoping it would help."

"Supernatural Curses and the Extra-dimensional Forces Behind Them," read Shaggy from the cover.

"You think maybe Scoobert's cursed?" asked Anne, the other Daphne.

"This whole town is cursed," said Velma. "We got used to crazy criminals pretending to be monsters all the time. But things are different. This I can't explain.'

They discussed the cursed treasure, and how the Planespheric disk kept leaning them to strange artifacts, labeled in Spanish as keys. So far they had an old flintlock and a conquistador's helmet, but no idea how to use them.

"Gang, for the first time in our history as mystery-solvers, we have to consider that something truly supernatural is happening here," said Velma.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you," said Dace, the other Velma. "Our gang has, on rare occasions, come across truly supernatural things, like real witches and zombies. You doubted me."

"I admit it: you were right," said Velma.

"Zoinks!" said Shaggy. "Well, you know what I say? When things get scary, the scared get pizza. And when things get extra scary, we get extra-deep dish. Right, Scooby-Doo?"

"Scooby-Dooby delicious!" said Scooby.

Norville sighed. "I miss my own dog. But pizza always helps."

* * *

They all drove in the local version of the Mystery Machine to Plan P-izza from Outer Space.

On the way, Daphne said, "You know, Fred, with everything that's happening, it makes you realize how precious life is. It kind of makes you not want to waste time and just tell certain people how you really feel. Doesn't it? I think I'm ready now. I'd be open to hearing how you feel."

"You mean, like, emotions or something crazy like that?" asked Fred. "Uh, well, right now I guess I feel kind of..."

"Yes?"

"Hungry! I feel hungry!"

Fred parked the car and rushed into the restaurant ahead of the others.

"Hunger is not an emotion, Fred Jones!" said Daphne.

Anne pulled Daphne aside privately. "I've been watching your relationship for a sign that I should open up to Frederick about my feelings. So far, it doesn't look good."

"My Fred is so oblivious," said Daphne. "I think your guy is better about that. If you're not going to do anything, maybe I should try for him."

"Don't you dare! He's mine or nobody's!" said Anne.

They went inside, where the pizzas had just come out.

"Here you go. Two of our 9-layer double deep dish pizzas with everything twice," said the waitress.

As Shaggy, Scooby, and Norville eagerly took slices of the pizza, a jeep crashed in through the front window of the restaurant.

"No way! It's Dr. Rick Spartan," said Fred. "He's an academic of adventure."

"You have an adventuring hero, too?" asked Frederick. "Is he anything like Melbourne O'Reilly?"

"Who's that?" asked Fred.

"Tell you later," said Frederick.

Spartan started grabbing up the food from the tables and throwing it outside.

"Cachinga! We've got to get rid of the food! We've got to get rid of all of the food!" Spartan shouted.

"Ohh! What is he doing? Why is he throwing all the food out the window?" asked Shaggy.

"Who cares? Whatever Dr. Spartan is doing, he probably has a great reason for doing it," said Fred.

"Maybe not," said Frederick. "Heroes can do bad things. Melbourne O'Reilly was once hypnotized into playing a mummy."

"Naah, not Dr. Spartan. I'm gonna get in on this," said Fred.

He ran to help, while the two Shaggys and the one Scooby complained about the loss of the food.

"Sir, if I may be so bold, the demon isn't here," Cachinga said in his very proper British accent.

"No time for talky-talky. Big-time creepy creep on the way," said Spartan.

A huge red demonic creature burst into the building, roaring and looking for food to devour.

"Curses! Too late," said Spartan. "We have to stop it!"

Spartan tried, but the creature seemed to have sumo-wrestler strength. It threw him back into a salad bar, knocking it over.

Before anyone else could stop it, the monster stuffed its face with all the bread and pizza it could find in the place. Then it ran out.

"It ate, like, everything," said Norville.

"What was that thing?" asked Dace.

"That is the gluten demon," said Spartan. If we don't stop it, it'll devour the entire food supply and starve us all, until there's nothing, and no one left alive in Crystal Cove."

Spartan explained that the gluten demon ate bread and starchy foods, things that he and Cachinga avoided. With the help of a scrapbook that Cachinga held open for him, he described the history of the beast and showed sketches of other food-related monsters.

"I vanquished many of them," said Spartan. "Except that olive oil demon. Slippery devil."

He laughed at his own joke.

"But as you can see, I don't have any pictures. My faithful guide and manservant Cachinga here dropped the camera. He can't seem to hold a spear and use modern technology at the same time."

"It's because you were shouting at me to take the picture and I got nervous," said Cachinga.

"I thought you savages were supposed to have an iron will."

"Well, forgive me for being such a disappointment."

"Why didn't you let Marion take the pictures? Where is your wife, anyway?" asked Daphne?

"Marion? Marion's gone," said Spartan.

He told a story of his wife being carried off by giant tsetse flies in Africa. He collapsed against the vehicle, sobbing. "It was horrible. Horrible!"

"Actually, she's fine," Cachinga told them. "She's just staying with her mother in Irvine. They're not getting along."

"Cachinga, no more floppy-flop lip-lips," said Spartan, still sobbing. "Master needs silence. Head place have bad juju. K-k?"

Velma quietly explained to the other gang, "She was so tired of adventuring in wild places that she posed as a headless monster to get him to quit. I thought they were working things out, but if he wanted to take her to Africa..."

Velma's cell phone rang. "It's my mom."

"Mom, what's up?" Velma pulled her head back as a familiar hideous growl came from the phone.

Realizing that there had been a gluten monster attack at the Crystal Cove Spook Museum, they jumped back in the Mystery Machine and raced to the scene.

* * *

They found one of the police deputies hiding in the back of the Broken Spine, the museum's bookstore and coffee shop.

"Sheriff Stone told me to stay here and secure the crime scene," the deputy said. "Apparently some kind of monster wrecked the place and ate all the biscotti, cakes, and cookies."

"And my mom?" asked Velma.

"She's fine," said the deputy. "They took her home. Sheriff had to go down to the rebuilt Bloody Stake restaurant. That crazy monster attacked there, too. Ate everything."

"The beast is feeding" said Spartan. "We have to act fast before it gets too powerful."

"Um, if you don't need me, I'll just go back to hiding," said the deputy.

"I have a special potion that'll stop the gluten demon cold," said Spartan. "Learned it from a shaman up the Yupiyali River. It's a tributary of the Amazon."

"I think we all know where the Yupiyali River is, Dr. Spartan," said Dace.

"Like, I didn't," said Shaggy.

"I can't even say it," said Scooby-Doo. He babbled several mispronunciations: "Yukaka. Yukalalala... Cucamonga"

"Here's the recipe," said Spartan, handing them a piece of paper. "Cachinga will take you to the strange and obscure locations to retrieve all the necessary ingredients."

"This is great! We can go with a three-pronged attack," said Fred. "Cachinga and the girls get the potion. Shaggy and Scooby will eat all the gluten-filled food in town to starve the gluten demon. And Dr. Spartan and I will rig a special trap."

"Count us in," said Scooby.

"Yeah! Again me and Scooby eat everything," said Shaggy.

"Hold on," said Frederick. "We need a four-pronged attack. We can't make a successful trap until we try to solve this as a mystery and look for clues."

"He's right," said Anne. "We tried going straight to a trap once to catch an ice hockey monster, but it doesn't work that way."

"Like, we have to build up our karma by paying our investigation dues," said Norville. "Then we can luck into a capture when the trap fails."

"Where's the first place you heard of the monster attacking?" Dace asked Spartan. "We should start there."

"The Francilee Jackson Show. She was filming before a live studio audience last night when it appeared in a cloud of smoke and attacked," said Spartan.

"Apparently attracted by her unhealthy food preparation," said Cachinga.

"Then that's where we'll go," said Frederick. The Coolsville gang took off.

* * *

Cachinga drove Velma and Daphne in the safari vehicle. "Poor old Spartan. He's just so lost without Marion. Without her, his plans have become quite ludicrous. The potion itself is probably useless, but I'd love to investigate the mystery with you girls."

"Mr. Cachinga, now you're talking our language," said Daphne.

"Let's investigate," said Velma.

"I didn't follow all that karma stuff, but the other gang's right that investigation always seems to pay off," said Daphne.

Since the other gang was starting at the Francilee Jackson set, they began at the wrecked Bloody Stake.

Fred Jones and Rick Spartan rigged a giant net trap full of bread and rolls.

Shaggy and Scooby visited Campus Burger (which had thankfully converted back to non-vegan after a massive loss of student business), Let Them Eat Cake, the Bagel Barrel, and every other place in town where they could find mass quantities of baked goods. They ate and ate, getting bigger and bigger as they went.

* * *

"Jinkies," said Dace, looking at the floor of the messed-up TV studio. "What's this? They look like receipts from a warehouse."

"And they're all signed AJS," said Anne.

A man called from the darkness. "Are you the insurance adjusters? Did you bring me my check?"

A gray-haired man with thick glasses stepped forward.

"Huh? You own these studios, Mr. ... Albrect J. Schwartz?" asked Frederick, reading his name tag.

"Of course, I own the place. Now give me my million dollars from insurance," said Schwartz. "C'mon."

"We are not from the insurance company," said Cassidy Williams.

"And we were just leaving," said Dace.

They got back into their Mystery Machine and drove away.

"Guys, I think we'd better go check out that warehouse," said Dace. "I have a feeling that's where our next clue is.'

"Are you suspicious of Schwartz?" asked Cassidy.

"Like, he's a little too perfect as a suspect," said Norville. "Probably a red herring."

"He has a great motive for attacking his own studio," said Cassidy. "The insurance."

"Yes, but why attack all the other places?" asked Anne. "That's too much work just to lay a false trail."

They arrived at the warehouse and checked inside.

"Is it me, or is it strange that an abandoned warehouse in a forgotten part of town has been filled with baking ingredients?" asked Anne.

"And the shipping manifest and order forms for all this are signed by none other than AJS," said Dace.

"That Schwartz fellow," said Frederick.

They heard a roar as the Gluten Demon charged in. Knowing it was too strong for them, they all climbed up on crates.

Cassidy threw a volley of sharp-edged music discs at the demon, but they bounced from its tough armor-like hide. Then she pulled out a bag of something and threw it into the monster's mouth. It gave a scream and ran away.

"Cassidy, what was in that?" asked Norville.

"When I heard about the monster's eating habits back at the pizza place, I decided to stock up with a bag of healthy food from the salad bar. A nice quinoa salad with cucumbers, a pinch of dill, and sprinkle of garlic in case it was vampire-like."

"That's my girl," said Norville. "Crazy prepared as usual."

"You got it, babe," said Cassidy.

"Dace, you think Cassidy's gluten-free food really drove the demon off?"

"I'm not so sure what's really going on here," said Dace. "But something's bugging me."

"About that TV show?" asked Cassidy, typing a query into her smart phone. "I just checked Fritter, the food chat site. There were plenty of chats about the monster on the show, but no messages from anyone who claimed to have been in the live audience."

"Come on," said Dace. "We have a few things to check before we can put this mystery to bed. Like hospital birth records, food allergies, and that video footage from Francilee's live broadcast."

* * *

Fred and Spartan checked over their net trap. Everything looked perfect.

"Now, if that gluten demon wants any bread, he'll have to come to this bakery, right, Dr. Spartan?"

Spartan was at a table, staring at a picture of his wife. "Marion should be here. If only she wasn't in the clutches of that evil Irvine cave troll."

"I thought you said tsetse flies as big as eagles took her," said Fred.

"What?" said Spartan. "I, uh... Never mind all that."

"Let's double-check the trap and..."

The huge Shaggy and Scooby waddled in.

"We're back," said Scooby.

"And have we been busy," said Shaggy with a burp.

Daphne, Velma, and Cachinga came in, followed by the other gang.

"Daphne, it feels like hours since I've seen you," said Fred.

"That's because it has been hours, Fred."

"Well, that would explain it."

"Listen," said Dace. "We found out so much about about the gluten demon..."

But she was interrupted by a roar. The Gluten Demon charged into the net full of food.

"Like, I'm too full to be scared," said Shaggy.

"Yeah. Me, too," said Scooby.

"Now, Dr. Spartan!" said Fred.

They activated the trap and the net lifted the monster into the air. But the net wasn't strong enough. It began to tear under the tremendous weight.

"Huhh! That thing's gotten too big," said Spartan. "The net won't hold!"

With a crash, the net gave way and Fred and Spartan were buried under mounds of baked goods.

"Fred!" cried Daphne.

"Like, that gluten demon just crunched on our friends," said Shaggy. "Ooh, that makes me mad."

"Come... on..." said Scooby, straining to get up.

"Let's...rumble..." said Shaggy.

Cassidy and Norville pushed them to their feet.

"It's fighting time," said Cassidy. "Norville... bad!"

"I'm bad all the time now, remember?" said Norville. "Like Sumo wrestlers and martial artists, away!"

"Like pick on someone your own super-size size," said Shaggy.

There was a terrific fight, with the giant Scooby and Shaggy bouncing their bellies against the monster while Norville and Cassidy kicked and punched. Finally, the creature went down.

"Now let's see who the gluten demon really is," said Fred, pulling off the monster mask.

"Francilee Jackson!" they all exclaimed in chorus.

"Not a big surprise after the work that the Coolsville Mystery gang did," said Dace.

"Hey, Cachinga, Daphne, and I investigated too," said Velma. "You just happened to get all the big clues."

Dace explained that the Francilee show wasn't really taped before a live audience. She had faked a tape, allowing her to create the monster with computer-generated special effects.

"Plus, her stage name is Francilee Jackson, but her birth certificate lists her as Agatha Juniper Schildenheimer," said Dace. "As AJS, she signed those manifests. She rented that secret warehouse. And she has a strange food allergy to all things healthy. Which is why she reacted to Cassidy's salad lunch so insanely. The only thing we don't know is... why."

Francilee/Agatha smirked. "Oh, y'all, it's so simple. I needed a big comeback. After my cornbread recipe was revealed to have no corn in it, I was ruined. Ruined! My only chance was to open my own bakery where I could serve up my new breakout dish, the double bacon mayonnaise butter-stuffed pasta surprise with buttered bread sauce!"

Spartan and Cachinga reacted by making disgusted faces at the sound of this fatty dish.

"Any cook worth their kosher sea salt knows the legend of the gluten demon. I dressed up like that and started destroyin' every restaurant in town so there'd be no competition when I opened mine. And I would have done it, too, been a huge success again, if it weren't for all y'all bread-hatin' health fanatics!"

By this time Sheriff Stone had arrived. "That's it, boys. Let's roll her away."

As they rolled her to a squad car, a ceramic bowl dropped from her costume and rolled to the feet of the gangs.

"My bowl! My precious bowl! No! My bowl! It's mine! Mine!" said Francilee.

"It's ancient by the look of it," said Velma, turning it over. "Tercero llave. It's the third key!"

Fred went over to his hero, who was sitting to the side and looking distressed again.

"Dr. Spartan. Rick. Call Marion. Call your wife and tell her you love her. And if she feels the same way, do everything you gotta do to keep her."

Spartan pulled out his phone and made a call.

Daphne came over to him. "Fred Jones, are you feeling ok?"

"Not yet," said Fred. He took her by the hand. "There. I feel better now."

Daphne smiled. So did Anne, looking on and becoming encouraged to make her own move soon.

"Cachinga! Make ready minivan plenty fast. We go quickie-quick," said Spartan. "Marion's agreed to come home. Now all we have to do is rescue her from her mother."

"Good to see you in such fine spirits, sir," said Cachinga.

The two headed off in the safari jeep.

Shaggy and Scooby couldn't fit into the Mystery Machine, so they decided to work off the food by walking home.

"Don't worry. Like, with your metabolism you'll be back to normal in no time," said Norville.

As the two staggered along, Norville stared back at them from the car. "Having fun, eating together. I am so jealous."

"I know, babe. But your Scoobert will pull through. We just have to be patient," said Cassidy.

"Speaking of patience, I wonder how the evil Mystery Incorporated is reacting to our having the whole Planespheric Disk and finding all these keys," said Fred. "We haven't heard from them since the bee-cows and the rocket launcher attack."

"Don't worry," said Cassidy. "As long as Ricky is in charge, they can't do much worse. He'll keep Pericles in line."

Unknown to her, it was now Pericles keeping Ricky in line, with cobra larvae implanted in his spine.


	26. The Romantic Rapscallion

Chester Greenwood was driving his family on a deserted road at night.

Erica, his wife, looked at a map. "I don't know, honey. This doesn't look like the Crystal Cove from the brochure. We might be lost."

"As usual," said Alice, his snarky tween daughter.

"Come on, you call this lost?" said Chester. "We're not lost. We're on an adventure."

"Adventures are stupid," said Alice.

A giant shadow of a pistol-wielding man loomed ahead.

"A man! A giant man!" shouted Alice.

With the squeal of tires the car stopped just in front of the figure, who turned out to be a normal-sized man, masked and wearing a sixteenth-century-style costume. He was standing beside a motorcycle. He pointed his pistols at them.

"Stand and deliver," said the man in a British accent. "I'm the Dandy Highwayman. And this is a robbery."

The Dandy Highwayman took their valuables at gunpoint.

"All I have is my wedding ring," said Erica. "I'm afraid it's not worth much."

She looked at her husband, who gave a nervous chuckle.

"But you're welcome to it," said Erica.

"A treasure, my lady," said the Dandy Highwayman, taking it gently from her finger and kissing her hand. "And I do trust you're having a splendid holiday."

"Me? You want to know how I am?" asked Erica.

"Quite so. Listening to you talk about your day, your dreams, and your desires will be sweet nectar to my ears."

"Oh, my," said Erica.

The Highwayman whipped around and shot the family SUV, which exploded. He ran back to his motorcycle and mounted it.

"Begging your pardon, my lady. But will you care to accompany me?"

"Me? Now? Okay," said Erica in a romantic daze.

She got onto the motorcycle behind him. The Dandy Highwayman drove off past the burning SUV, then showed off with a dramatic jump that cleared the wrecked vehicle, Chester, and Alice.

"Did mom just take off with some kind of road pirate?" asked Alice as the two roared away.

* * *

Norville woke with a start beside Scoobert's bed in the hospital.

"Zoinks, Scoob! I just dreamed we were safe at home in Coolsville, and then, like, those crazy robots from the underwater base came in and started shooting at us. I hate nightmares!"

Scoobert sat up in the hospital bed with a blank look. "Nibiru! Nibiru is coming."

Norville backed away. "Scoob, no!"

A robot crashed through the wall and grabbed his neck.

Norville woke up again, this time for real. He groaned, "Too many doughnuts before bedtime."

* * *

The local gang was headed to the mall in the Mystery Machine. The other gang had declined to join them, pulling together to comfort Norville after his nightmares of the previous night.

"My mom is putting in a pool in our backyard," said Velma.

"That's nice," said Daphne. "Every home should have a pool, like we do."

"But she already hired a pool boy to sit in a deck chair," said Velma. "He's well-built and has a British accent. Should I be worried for my parent's marriage?"

"I'm sure they're devoted to each other," said Fred. "Like us, Daph. I never have to worry about a guy with a British accent taking you away."

Daphne smiled and gave him a pat on the shoulder. "I saw an adorable purple dress at the mall. I think you'll love it, Fred."

"Like, just like your other ones?" asked Shaggy.

"Exactly," said Daphne. "That's why I know he'll love it. And Velma, I saw the cutest little pashmina that would look perfect on you."

"I don't even know what that means," said Velma.

"Like, Scooby-Doo and I love the mall," said Shaggy. "I mean, dude, can you say food court-apalooza?"

"Of course. Foodkabalooba. Raffaroffa. I can't say it, but I still love it. Hee hee hee."

They came to a section of the road full of wrecked, burning cars. They got out to investigate and found Sheriff Stone on the scene.

"What? Do you Mystery dorks have some kind of radar in that van of yours that smells trouble?" asked Stone.

"No, but what a great idea," said Fred.

"Sheriff, what happened? Was there some kind of pileup?" asked Velma.

"According to my eye witness, some guy in a patriot hat is running around town robbing people," said Stone. "Then he puts some kind of evil spell on their womenfolk with this kooky English accent of his and rides off with them. He calls himself the Dandy Highwayman."

In the background a man staggered by sobbing for his wife, Marsha.

"Looks like we got another man down," said Stone. "Sometimes the things I see on this job, they don't sit easy."

"The Dandy Highwayman?" said Fred. "Well, gang, it looks like we've got another mystery on our hands."

"I wonder where the Highwayman's going to strike next?" asked Daphne.

* * *

At a town meeting for victims of the robbers, led by Mayor Nettles and Sheriff Stone, the two gangs found out where he struck next - the Blake mansion.

"The Dandy Highwayman made my Nan empty the safe into this big black bag he had," said Barty Blake. And then-then he got on his bike, held his hand out to my Nan, and It was terrifying, I tell you. It was like she was possessed."

Other men chimed in that this was what happened to them.

"I can't go on without my wife," said one. "I'm hungry. I'm really hungry."

"Settle down. Settle down, people," said the Sheriff "Let's get some control here. We're men. We're tough. We're warriors. We can survive anything."

A motorcycle burst through the door, knocking it onto the Sheriff and pinning him to the ground.

"This is a robbery," said the Dandy Highwayman. "Stand and deliver. Put all your valuables in this bag."

Knowing he was armed with weapons capable of taking out cars with one shot, and not wanting to risk injury to the crowd, even the bold martial artists like Norville and Cassidy held back, letting the charming bandit carry out his work.

"My only valuable is Scoob," said Shaggy.

"Nu-uh. I'm not getting in there, no way," said Scooby-Doo.

"It is such an honor to meet you, Mayor Nettles," said the Dandy Highwayman. "It is not every day one has the opportunity to be in the presence of such a powerful and yet ravishingly beautiful woman. I would love to hear the story of your life."

Mayor Nettles looked at him with admiration in her eyes.

"How you grew up, how you came to be mayor, everything. Every little detail and every emotion that came along with it. Won't you please join me, Madame Mayor?"

As Sheriff Stone struggled out from under the door, the Mayor got onto the motorcycle with the Highwayman.

"Oh, take one of these other losers' women," said Stone. "Leave my Janet Mayor Nettles alone!"

With powerful roar, the two sped away.

"Janet, no! You Mystery geeks have to get her back. I feel a full body anxiety cramp coming on," said the Sheriff, falling to the floor.

"You can count on us, Sheriff," said Dace (the other Velma).

"Gang, let's get this Dandy Highwayman off the street before he gets his hands on our girl," said Fred.

"Oh, Freddy," said Daphne.

"Let's split up, gangs," said Frederick. "You local guys can dig for background information about the Dandy Highwayman. We'll set up a trap for him on the highway."

"A trap without Scoobert?" said Norville. "Like, how can that possibly work? We'd usually disguise ourselves as a couple of potential victims and then when he tried to grab us our luck would kick in and..."

"We'll make it work," said Frederick with determination.

* * *

The locals visited the Crystal Cove Public Library. There was a librarian wearing glasses at the information desk.

"We were wondering if you have any books on someone called the Dandy Highwayman?" Velma asked him.

"The Dandy Highwayman? Hmm," said the librarian. "Let me see. You want the dashing debonair rogue section. Right between the swarthy scoundrel and the exuberant imp."

Soon the gang was seated at a table with piles of books. Scooby fell asleep from boredom.

* * *

Scooby found himself in a strange hallway lined with curtains. There was black-and-white tiling on the floors in a zigzag pattern. Down the hallway, Scooby saw his counterpart disappear into another room.

"Huh? Scobert?" said Scooby, and followed.

In the next room were armless sculptures, and sofas, but no sign of Scoobert. A small man was dancing."

"Welcome to the Sitting Room, Scooby-Doo," said the dancing man in a weird voice.

* * *

Scooby woke with a start. He was still in the library, his face in a book.

"Look at this," said Daphne. "All the books on dashing rogues and debonair thieves have been checked out by the woman that have been abducted."

"And check this out," said Velma. "It's a members list for a book club with all the ladies' names on it. Look, Daph, your mom's on here."

"Book club? My mom hates to read, unless it's a shopping catalogue," said Daphne.

Scooby nosed a piece of cloth that was inside his book. He was pretty sure it hadn't been there when he fell asleep. "Where did this come from?"

"Cuarto llave," said Velma. "It's the fourth key. Guys, I don't think it was any accident that we found this."

"But why here? And how does it tie into the Dandy Highwayman?" asked Fred.

"All I know is we have to come up with some answers fast, or I might never see my mother again," said Daphne.

"We should ask the librarian about that book club," said Velma.

They went back to the help desk, but the librarian had left the building.

"I hope the others are having good luck with their trap," said Fred.

* * *

"Freddie, I don't like this idea of yours, to use me as bait," said Anne, the other Daphne.

She was pretending to be stranded on the road, with the others whispering to her from behind a bush.

"It should work great," said Frederick. "Villains tend to kidnap you a lot."

"And tie you up," said Norville.

"It's only happened in a few cases," said Anne.

"The Swamp Witch, the Scare Pair, the Mantis, the Leland brothers,..." said Dace.

"I resent the stereotype of being the damsel in distress. That's why I studied martial arts."

"It's just for show, to attract the villain," said Frederick. "Then we can jump him."

"Just keep looking helpless and crazy rich," said Norville.

"You know the other Fred would never risk this," said Anne. "He just got her back. There is no way that he would let the Dandy Highwayman get anywhere near his girlfriend."

"Too bad for the Highwayman that we're the ones doing the trap," said Frederick. "We don't have that problem."

"Right," said Anne in a cold tone of voice.

"It's perfect that you look so weak and vulnerable," said Frederick. "You're the easiest kind of bait."

He went into a reverie, looking away from her for a moment.

"Remember the - Daph? I mean... Anne? She was right here."

The gang saw that Anne had slipped away. She got on the motorcycle of the Dandy Highwayman.

"Anne! I'm coming to save you!" Frederick called, but it was too late.

Frederick was so distraught that he couldn't drive, so Dace took the wheel of the Mystery Machine while Frederick rode shotgun.

"Dace, could you drive any slower?" Norville complained. "My grandma drives faster."

"I'm not driving slowly," said Dace. "It's called being cautious. Did you know that 33% of all accidents happen when you're just minutes away from your house?"

"Like, we're a universe away from your house," said Norville.

"It's still better to play it safe."

"This upholstery still has my Anne's sweet scent on it," said Frederick. "Oh, Anne. Why? Why?"

"Oh, brother," said Dace.

* * *

Anne was in a cave with the Dandy Highwayman's collection of women. There were sofas and comfortable chairs arranged around a pile of books and loot in the center of the room. Most of the women were reading quietly. Anne was sitting looking thoughtful.

The Dandy Highwayman came up to her.

"I hope I'm not disturbing you. I just thought you might wish to talk."

"What made you think that?" asked Anne.

"Well, you are a woman," said the Highwayman. "You see, I understand such things. I as well love to share my innermost feelings. The sound of a woman talking incessantly without end is sweet music to my ears."

"Well, I would like to talk, but all these others around make me a bit shy," said Anne. "Could we go into another room?"

"But of course, my lady," said the Highwayman, leading the way into an isolated part of the cave. "I'm happy to help you make the adjustment to being here."

As soon as she knew they were out of sight from the other women (especially Janet Nettles, who might use her formidable fighting skills in his defense), Anne grabbed the Highwayman by the arm and flipped him to the ground with an aikido throw. He lay there, stunned. Anne produced ropes and tied the villain up.

She got out her cell phone and called Frederick. "I've captured the Dandy Highwayman. I'll get outside where you can track the GPS on my phone."

When the gang arrived, Frederick rushed to her. "Anne, I was so worried. I was beside myself that I might lose you for good."

"You do have feelings for me," said Anne. "That's what I hoped you would realize. I have feelings for you, too."

"Anne!" said Frederick happily, giving her a hug. She hugged back.

The other gang arrived, along with Sheriff Stone.

"Now let's see who this mysterious woman stealer really is," said Stone. He took off the mask, revealing a bespectacled face.

"The librarian?" exclaimed the local gang in chorus.

"Like, seriously? But you're not even British," said Shaggy. "I'm so confused."

The librarian explained how he spent a life reading about other people's adventures. He decided to have one of his own, and become a dashing rogue who could charm all the ladies.

"I studied how to do an English accent. I incorporated a motorcycle helmet into my costume's hat and practiced my motorcycle skills for hours and hours. Then I discovered something unimaginable- the key to a woman's total admiration and devotion. All you have to do is pay attention to them when they're talking."

Sheriff Stone looked sceptical.

"Crazy, isn't it? It wasn't until I started to moderate the book club that I learned how to listen. From there, I actually became interested in what women have to say. Before long, I was fully engaged in their desires and feelings. I was living the dream. And I would have gotten away with it if it weren't for you meddling romance killers."

"I'm not buying it for a second," said Stone. "You put some kind of voodoo magic spell on them, you did."

"Never. I just listened, that's all. Except when the going got tough. I had a little help. These earplugs were the only magic I used."

"I knew it! I knew there was some kind of trick involved," said Stone.

All the other women were rescued, though all of them said they went willingly, because he was charming and listened to them.

On the way back home in the car, Fred and Shaggy practiced that kind of listening trick on Daphne and Velma. It almost worked, but it failed when they revealed they were using earplugs.

* * *

Scooby fell asleep again, and was once again in the Sitting Room with the little man.

"The time has come," said the man. "She is here."

Another Great Dane entered the room.

"Scoobert?" asked Scooby.

"I am not Scoobert," said the being with a feminine voice. "I've only borrowed his body so that I may bring you an urgent message. Scooby-Doo, your life is in danger."

"Huh?"

"I am of the Anunnaki, inter-dimensional beings that visit the planet Earth every few thousand years. We arrive at a time call Nibiru, when the barriers between our worlds grow weak. The Anunnaki have a great history of helping humans, but we have no physical form and must inhabit animals."

A vision appeared of animal spirits that humans had worshiped, like Sun Wukpong the Monkey King and Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent.

"This is why some animals, our descendants, can talk and others cannot. But not all Anunnaki are kind and good. There are evil ones. And the most evil one of all is imprisoned beneath Crystal Cove and must not be set free."

There was a vision of a crystal sarcophagus filled with rolling black pearls.

"You must undo it, Scooby-Doo," said the Annunaki. "Undo it all. Save yourself. Save your friends. Save the world."

Scooby woke up, to give the gang the warning, "The cursed treasure is evil. Evil! We have to destroy it."

* * *

Back in a room adjoining the Sitting Room, two figures had been watching.

"Like, they'll have to do it without our good sides, won't they, Cass?"

The two nodded to each other sadly, then froze again into immobility.


	27. Black Mirror

Velma phoned Cassidy Williams. "Hi, Cassidy. The Mayor just called us about a supposedly haunted house. It's a school day, so I was wondering if your gang wanted to take it on."

Cassidy said, "Everyone's over at the hospital visiting Scoobert. Is it a big case?"

"No, seems like a little one. We can probably solve it easily on the way to school," said Velma.

"Call me if things get ugly," said Cassidy. "I'll be there."

"Okay," said Velma.

"It's about time to re-hide the Disk, right?" Cassidy asked. "We could help with that."

"I think we should keep that to the local team," said Velma. We know the town better, having grown up here."

"I grew up here, too," said Cassidy.

"Well..." said Velma.

"Is it still a trust thing, after the way I spied on you for E?" asked Cassidy.

"Not exactly, but we keep discovering weird things about the Disk," Velma said. "I read about the other mystery-solving groups in the Burlington library. All of them failed in the long run. It seems like they all got corrupted, somehow."

"There could be something to that," said Cassidy. "Brad and Judy weren't like this, back then. Neither was Ricky. But I'm all right; I think I've proved it. You wouldn't even have all the pieces now if I hadn't given Marcie the access code to his vault."

"You have a point, Cassidy. I'll talk to the gang about it. Right now, we have to head out and solve this mystery."

* * *

While the gang was waiting for Fred to come out, Velma phoned the Mayor.

"That's right, Mayor Nettles. The place wasn't haunted. Daphne found the neighbor's cat locked up in there. Poor thing had irritable bowel syndrome."

"Ugh!" said Scooby.

"Yes, that's why it was making all those terrible noises. No, you're more than welcome."

Velma hung up, and said, "It's 20 minutes past rendezvous time and still no Fred. I'm virtually assured my first tardy ever."

"What if he's hurt?" asked Daphne. "Let's go back in and find him."

Shaggy chuckled and said, "I'm sure Freddie's fine, Daph. We were all over that house, and the only scary things we found were an unhappy cat, and Scooby-Doo doing an impression of my Mom using an old hat from the attic."

Scooby was showing off his impression of Paula Rogers when they heard a voice.

"Hello, friends."

"Oh Freddie, thank goodness!" said Daphne.

She ran to Fred, but he brushed right past her.

"This place was a total bust. I mean, nothing scary here. So, let's get to school before we're late. Punctuality is an important facet of learning. Right, Daphne?"

"Um, right Fred," said Daphne.

They all got into the Mystery Machine. Fred had a little trouble starting the car, and Velma had to remind him about the tricky carburetor.

"Righty-o! Ok, let's roll-io," said Fred.

As they drove through town, Shaggy and Scooby got out an enormous sandwich as a pre-school snack.

"Hey, what do you two think you're doing?" asked Fred.

Scooby said, "Having a little snack."

"No eating in the van," said Fred. "Eating leads to crumbs. Crumbs lead to germs. Germs lead to sick days from work, secretly crippling the nation's economy."

They drove on to school, with everyone wondering about Fred.

* * *

After school, Fred was driving again. He stopped suddenly in front of an electronics store.

Velma asked, "What are you doing?"

"Making a stop," said Fred, going into the store.

The others got out and waited.

"Fred is acting funny," said Scooby-Doo.

"And not like hah-hah funny," said Shaggy. "Not funny at all."

"Yeah, freaky funny," said Scooby.

"I'm sure it's just a phase," said Daphne.

Fred came out with an audio device and earplugs.

"Norbert, catch," said Fred, tossing Shaggy the keys. "You drive."

Shaggy said, "Me drive? Norbert?"

"Freddie, is something bothering you?" asked Daphne.

Fred took the shotgun seat. "Not at all , dear girlfriend. I'm just listening to the baseball game. I love sports."

Daphne and Velma sat glumly in back. Scooby whimpered.

"Does the dog need walking?" asked Fred.

"I walk myself, Fred," said Scooby.

Fred offered Scooby a box of Canine Crumpets, which he indignantly refused.

"That is not a Scooby Snack, Fred."

"What difference does it make? I'm sure they all taste the same."

Fred drove to a strange series of locations, each time claiming it was where he had hidden the Planespheric Disk. First was the F-F-Fearatorium Food Emporium. Then it was the Aracane-A-Rama Move Complex. Then the Kennel of the Horrible Hounds, and the Education Board of Crystal Cove.

"Look in all the desks, I guess. I'll check out the superintendent's office."

When Fred left the room, the others regrouped.

"Gang, something is definitely wrong here," said Velma. "I mean, is it me, or is Fred acting stranger than usual?"

"It's not you," the others chorused.

"Maybe if we can retrace our steps, we'll see a pattern," said Velma. She wrote a list of all the places in order, then circled the first two columns of letters.

Daphne said, "Fake Fred?"

"I knew it!" said Velma.

"Then who is he?" said Scooby.

"And who sent the message?" asked Shaggy.

Velma said, "My guess? The real Fred. Wherever he is, he's probably in life-threatening peril."

Daphne said, "And in the clutches of some hideous creature!"

"The fake's coming back," said Velma. "Keep playing along for now."

The fake had them driving around in circles until there was a new message from his earpiece.

"Ha ha, now that's more like it!"

"Should I keep driving around in circles, Mr. Fred, sir?" asked Shaggy.

"No, the old abandoned factory, hippie," said Fake Fred. And floor it!"

With Fred's attention focused ahead, Velma was able to send off a text to Cassidy.

* * *

"Fan out, search every inch of this place until we find that disk."

"Well, like, if you remember hiding it here, like, Dude, where is it?" asked Shaggy.

"Well, the exact location slipped my mind."

"We can't let that fake Fred get his hands on the Planespheric Disk," said Velma.

Scooby asked, "What do we do?"

Shaggy said, "Like, we do what the real Fred would do. We trap him."

"Agreed," said Velma. "But we've got to be quick, before he gets his hands on.."

Fred shouted, "The Planespheric disk! I found it! I found it!"

Velma said, "Okay, never mind."

Daphne asked, "Now that you've found it, what are you going to do with it, Fake Fred?"

"Ah, well done. You've finally figured out that I'm an imposter. So what? I'm taking the Planespheric Disk, and who's going to stop me? You? You?"

Real Fred swung in on a factory cable. "No, me!"

"Me?" said the fake. The two went back and forth on who was who, and then began to fight, struggling over the Disk.

"Don't just stand there, Shaggy! Get in there and help Fred," said Daphne.

"Which one?" asked Shaggy, who had completely lost track.

"The good one!" said Daphne.

"Be careful, Fred. Don't hurt him."

Daphne screamed at the sight of a strange older version of herself.

Scooby said, "Daphne, you look terrible. You should get more sleep."

The fight continued, setting the factory in motion until gears whirled, presses stamped, and molten metal poured onto the floor.

One of them got the Disk and pulled away when the other got his foot stuck in a bucket and fell to the floor.

"You'll never beat me," said the one with the DIsk.

"I don't need to beat you. I just need you to stay put," said the other, throwing a chain that wound around his opponent's legs. A conveyor belt brought him under a giant electromagnet, which attracted the chains and pulled him upside-down. The other came near, but he was also caught when the bucket his foot was stuck in was likewise pulled up.

"Get me out of this. He's the fake," said one of the Freds.

"They're, like, identical. Right down to the ascot," said Shaggy.

"Allow me," said Daphne. "Freddie, how do you feel about me?"

"What do you mean? You're my love, Daphne. I'm crazy about you."

"And you?" asked Daphne.

"Aw, gosh. Gee Daph, you know I - well, aside from traps and solving mysteries, um... er, my stomach's getting hurty."

"Oh Freddie, it's you!" said Daphne, kissing the real Fred.

They turned off the magnet and dropped both to the ground.

Cassidy Williams arrived and stood over Fake Fred. "Don't you dare try anything."

"Well, if you're so smart, then who am I really?" asked the impostor.

"You're one of the most heartless criminals Mystery Inc has ever faced," said Fred. "Aren't you, Dad?"

Fred tried to unmask Brad Chiles, but nothing came off.

"Ow! It's not a mask, imbecile. I had plastic surgery to look like you! You would have spotted a mask too quickly," said Brad.

"I don't know what you think you were doing. You're supposed to be my father. But how could you try to impersonate me when you knew absolutely nothing about me?"

"If he's Brad, that makes you his sneaky criminal mom, Judy," said Velma. She pulled at Judy's face.

"Ow! Watch it. I had plastic surgery, too," said Judy.

"I know," said Velma smugly.

"Brad Chiles and Judy Reeves? Like, why?" asked Shaggy.

"Yeah, why?" asked Scooby.

"For the treasure!" said Brad. "What else? It was the genius mind of Professor Pericles that thought up the whole plan, wasn't it, Judy?"

"That's right, Brad," said Judy. "While we went under the knife, Professor Pericles had Mr. E arrange for the Crystal Cove studio to be changed into an exact replica of the town."

"Except for more end-of-the-worldish, obviously," said Brad.

Velma said, "I hate to be the one to point this out, but that's just crazy."

A creepy voice with a German accent came from above them. "Is it, Velma? Or is it so brilliant you cannot begin to fathom its true genius?"

"Professor Pericles?" said everyone in chorus.

"You failed, Professor," said Fred. "You'll never get your filthy talons on this Disk."

"On the contrary, Frederick," said Pericles. "You are going to hand it over to me, along with my associates, your dear parents. Or else, I will destroy the one thing you care about most."

Hulking robots came out of the shadows, the Kreigstaffebots. They grabbed Daphne by the arms.

"Zoinks!" cried Shaggy.

"Freddie!" called Daphne.

Fred held up the Disk. "Fine, you win. Take it!"

Cassidy Williams ran over and snatched it out of Fred's hands. "No! I'll never give it up, no matter what!"

Scooby leaped at her. Snatching the Disk with his mouth, he threw it to Pericles with a powerful toss of his head. Pericles caught it in the air and flew high, out of reach.

"Excellent. Auf Weidersehn, you beautiful kinder!" said Pericles as he flew away.

Cassidy watched him go with her fists clenched.

The bots threw back Daphne and retreated into the shadows, accompanied by Brad and Judy.

"Freddie, I'm so sorry," said Daphne. "Pericles got the Disk because I got grabbed by a robot."

"The important thing is that you're back safe and sound," said Fred. "And you look good again!"

"Only now, Pericles has the Planespheric Disk," said Scooby.

"That's right," said Cassidy, "And it could mean the end of the world. You should have let me keep it."

"If we hadn't given it to him it would have been the end of Daphne," said Shaggy.

"You did a bad thing, Rassidy," said Scooby.

"Sacrifices are sometimes necessary for the greater good" said Cassidy.

"This morning I was talking to you about us giving you more trust," said Velma. "That's off now."

"Fine," said Cassidy. "I don't need you. I'll get the Disk back on my own."

She stalked away. Nobody could think of anything to say to stop her.

"Now what do we do?" asked Scooby-Doo.


	28. Red Room

Chapter 28 – Red Room

The Crystal Cove Mystery Incorporated was meeting at the Roger's house, talking about what to do about the loss of the Planespheric Disk and the betrayal by Cassidy Williams that had nearly cost Daphne her life. Scooby was exhausted and he had gone to bed early.

"We have to tell the other gang," said Velma. "They need to know what Cassidy did."

"This will kill Norville," said Shaggy. "Like, she was his girlfriend."

There was a cry from Scooby's bedroom. They rushed in to find him deep in a nightmare.

"No, get away! No! Run boy!" said Scooby, sitting up in the bed. He tried to look around, but a sleep mask covered his eyes. "That scary monster stole my eyes!"

Shaggy said, "Scooby-Doo! Wake up!"

Scooby pawed at Shaggy's face until Shaggy snatched off the sleep mask.

"I can see! It's a miracle!" said Scooby.

"Scooby-Doo, like, what's gotten into you?" asked Shaggy.

"The Freak. The Freak of Crystal Cove is back, and he's in my dreams." He snatched the book Velma was holding and pointed to the image of the author, Professor Kharon, on the back cover. "He's in there, too. We've got to do something!"

* * *

As they drove to Kharon's house to investigate, Velma objected. "I don't know, guys. This seems like a crazy idea. Scooby could have easily seen the picture on the back of my book. That's why he dreamed about the author."

Daphne said, "Either way, it's the only real lead we have."

"Besides. Velm, you've been reading this book, _Supernatural Curses and the Extra-Dimensional Forces Behind Them_. You must think there's something behind all this," said Shaggy.

"I don't," said Velma. "I wasn't sure at first, but I know in my head there must be some sort of logical explanation here, that doesn't involve extra-dimensional aliens, real magic, or ancient curses."

"You're wrong, Velma," said Scooby. "It's all true. Shaggy, read the back."

Shaggy read, "The author, Professor Horatio Kharon, is a tenured professor at Miskatonic University... and a world-renowned hypnotherapist and occultist. Professor Kharon went on permanent sabbatical, disappearing from academic life, and became a recluse living outside of Crystal Cove, and he hates people."

"Even a tenured professor can be wrong," said Velma. "I believe in science, not the supernatural."

"But think about all the things the other gang has been telling us," said Daphne. "Like a real Chest of Demons, and real aliens."

"That's not even the weirdest thing," said Shaggy. "Norville told me of one Halloween where, like, there was so much magic going on that Dace's mind couldn't handle it. Dace, Anne, and Frederick all turned into monsters, and so did the Mystery Machine. He and Scoobert saved the world and none of the others could remember it afterwards."

"So we only have his word it wasn't a dream," said Velma. "I find that story highly dubious. Anyway, their world is different than ours. We don't have magic, even if they do."

"Don't be too sure, Velm," said Shaggy. "Your mind might get blown, too."

"Whatever happens, I can handle it," said Velma.

* * *

They drove up to a large, forbidding house with a spiked iron gate blocking the driveway.

"This is it," said Fred. "If he's in Scooby's dream, this is definitely a man we need to talk to."

Scooby whimpered.

Velma said, "I still think this is crazy."

Fred pressed the intercom button at the gate.

"Aah! Go away!" said a voice from the intercom. "No one's home. No one!"

"Hello, there's obviously somebody home," said Daphne. "You answered the call box."

"Darn it, I hate it when I do that," said the voice. "Go away, anyway. Go away!"

"We can't," said Scooby. "You're in my dreams. You're dancing in my dreams every night!"

"What?"

The gate opened and they drove in. The tiny Professor Kharon came out on the porch and grabbed Scooby-Doo by the collar.

"All right dog, talk. Did you see me? Was it actually me in rooms and halls of red curtains?"

"Yeah," said Scooby. "Yeah, yeah, yeah."

"What's it all mean, Doc?" asked Fred.

"Quiet, blondie. I've got to think," said Kharon. "This could be it, the moment."

He led them to another room. Scooby jumped into Shaggy's arms at the sight of the paintings that filled the walls.

"The Freak!" cried Scooby and Shaggy together.

"Like, why is the Freak of Crystal Cove on your walls, Professor?" asked Shaggy.

"What?" said Kharon. "I don't know. I see that horrible thing in my dreams, my nightmares. If that thing is after you, dog, then it's probably too late. You're already a goner."

"Like, hold on. That's crazy talk," said Shaggy. "One more word out of you and..."

"Yeah? And what?" said Kharon, getting in Shaggy's face.

Shaggy cowered and backed down. "Um, like Freddy, tell him what you're going to do."

"Something... bad, I guess," said Fred in a mild tone.

"That's right, something bad, I guess. Because nobody says crazy stuff like that about my Scooby-Doo."

"I apologize for my bluntness," said Kharon. "I've lost something. That me you see dancing? That's the best part of me, trapped in the Sitting Room."

Velma said, "Oh, give me a break. The Sitting Room? What are you talking about?"

"A world between worlds, a waiting room at a junction between time, space, and different dimensions. In it, you'll find the answer."

"To what?" asked Daphne.

"To whatever it is you need to find," said Kharon. "I found a way to enter the Sitting Room through hypnosis, but part of me got trapped there."

He pointed at Scooby. "And if that Freak gets you, Scooby, when you're dreaming, you'll never wake up."

Scooby gasped.

"How do we stop this monstrous Freak?" Daphne asked.

"You have to face it," said Kharon. "Find the monster's true identity, and it will be defeated."

"That just so happens to be our specialty," said Fred.

"You guys aren't really buying all of this, are you?" asked Velma. "There's no such thing as real monsters."

"Guys in masks, real monsters, doesn't matter to me," said Fred. "They're all going down."

"Hmmm," said Velma.

Kharon persuaded them to try an experiment in hypnosis. They all lay on their backs on the floor.

Kharon handed Velma a metal figurine of a warrior woman. "You, your skepticism is your strength. Take this talisman. Give it to my other self when the time is up. You have one hour. After that... there's no coming back."

From his desk, Kharon lowered a spinning hypnotic disk over the gang. All of them went into a trance. Kharon took out a timer and the hour countdown began.

* * *

They were standing in one of the hallways of the red-curtained Sitting Room.

"This way," said Scooby-Doo, and the others followed him into a room with purple chairs and Greek sculptures.

"Like, Scoob, where's your little dancing dude?" asked Shaggy.

"I don't know," said Scooby.

"Look," said Daphne, pointing.

There was a room full of motionless people that included Mayor Jones, Cletus Darrow and his family, Fernando El Aguirre with some of his men, Brad and Judy, Ed Machine, a teen-aged Ricky Owens, and a normal-aged Cassidy Williams. Next to Cassidy was the still figure of Shaggy.

"What am I doing over there?" asked Shaggy. "Like, is that me, or am I me?"

"I don't understand," said Daphne.

"Oh Daphne, we are soul-mates," said Fred. "I never understand anything. Except maybe, if the Freak of Crystal Cove is here, it's obviously one person, my Not-Dad, the ex-Mayor Jones."

He approached the figure and touched it. "Is that right, Not-Dad? Not-Dad?"

At his touch, Jones came to life. "Capering candlesticks, Fred!"

"Like, Fred's non-parental. What are you doing here?" asked Shaggy.

"You're in prison," said Daphne.

"Only part of me," said Jones. "What you see here are the best parts of all of us, that have been trapped here in between worlds because of our association with the cursed treasure of Crystal Cove. We've all been tainted in one way or another by that darn treasure."

Velma said, "Scooby, you have one crazy dream."

"Thanks, Velma," said Scooby.

"Am I, like, tainted, too?" asked Shaggy. "Did I lose the best part of me and not know it?"

"It would seem so," said Jones. "The rest of me isn't aware I'm missing."

"If this is the best part of you, why are you masquerading as the Freak and scaring my Scooby-Doo?" asked Shaggy.

"Jumping juniper bushes!" said Jones. "That's not me. I got the idea for my Freak costume from my dreams, my nightmares, because that nightmare Freak is in here with us. I know who it is."

The lights began to flash on and off, and there was a horrible growling from somewhere close by.

"The monster is free!" said Scooby-Doo.

There was a swirl of black energy, and there was the Freak. It growled and lunged, and they all ran.

"This can't be happening. This can't be happening!" cried Velma.

Everyone scattered in different directions, getting separated (except for Shaggy and Scooby).

* * *

Fred found a frozen tableau of four cowgirls, the Mystery Gang, giving their bull member a drink of water from a strange-looking bucket.

"Hold the phone," said Fred. "The conquistador helmet... the second Key."

Then the Freak manifested, and Fred was on the run again.

* * *

Velma found herself in a room she recognized as part of the old Darrow Mansion, with the frozen Darrow family in residence. Danny was playing on the floor, his sister was standing nearby in the costume of an Egyptian princess, and Mrs. Darrow was looking with concern at her husband, who was using the spark from an old flintlock pistol to light a candle.

"Jinkies, the Darrow family," said Velma. "He's using the first Key."

Then the Freak appeared before her, and she also had to run. It teleported into her way again and again, until she had to leap through the curtain that led back into the Sitting Room.

* * *

Daphne found a scene at the Burlington Library, with the Benevolent Lodge of Mystery arriving by train. Oswald P. Burlington's orangutan, Mr. Peaches, was blowing a scrap of cloth into the air.

"Jeepers, the Benevolent Lodge of Mystery," said Daphne.

Then the Freak was upon her, and she fled.

* * *

Scooby and Shaggy found themselves in a village in Old California. A group of masked people was watching their skunk kick some dirt into a pottery bowl.

Scooby went over for a closer look at the skunk. "Aw look, he has a little mask." He sniffed. "And a lot of stink. P.U.!"

Near the group they saw a vendor with stacks of fresh tortillas for sale.

"Hey, Scooby-Doo, maybe we should take advantage of this crazy dream world and snack up," said Shaggy.

"You said it, Shaggy!" said Scooby. "Let's put the Fee in Fiesta."

They grabbed sombreros off of a couple of men standing nearby, and happily chowed down on the tortillas. Then came the inevitable interruption.

"The monstrous Freak!" cried Scooby as they both bolted away.

* * *

The gang members ran down hallways that converged on one spot, and crashed into each other.

"Like, am I glad we found you guys," said Shaggy.

"That monstrous Freak seems to be everywhere," said Daphne.

"Guys, I'm ready to wake up now," said Velma.

Scooby-Doo started sniffing around.

"Hold that thought, Velma," said Fred. "Scooby, what is it?"

"Oh, it's Scoobert," said Scooby. "I finally picked up his trail. Come on."

They all followed.

Scooby pointed. "I found him."

"And the monstrous Freak found us!" said Shaggy, as the monster appeared again behind them.

They ran, barely ahead of it.

"Through here," said Scooby, pointing to a curtain.

Shaggy just escaped the creature by diving forward, bowling over the others.

They landed in a jungle setting with a Mayan temple ahead. The monster tried to follow, but cringed at the light.

"Look gang, the sun. It's burning him," said Shaggy.

"No Shaggy, it's something else," said Daphne.

Velma had fallen close to the entrance, and the Freak reached for her.

"He's got Velma," said Fred. "Quick, grab her."

The monster pulled on Velma's arms, and the others pulled on her legs.

"You're not taking our Velma!" said Scooby.

"You're tearing me apart!" cried Velma.

"Try to pull in unison," said Daphne. "Get the Freak into the light. Now!"

With one unified tug, they pulled Velma from the monster's grip. It staggered into the light.

The talisman that Velma had been given by Kharon came free. The creature grabbed it and ran back into the curtained rooms.

"That's it, I quit!" said Velma. "I don't understand any of this. I have spent my whole life believing in facts and clues, but we're in some dream world fighting a nightmare monster. It doesn't make sense. I want it to make sense. I need it to make sense."

She broke down in tears.

"It's okay, it's all right, Velm," said Daphne. "Sometimes you have to not think. Sometimes you have to feel your way in order for things to make sense.

"You are perfect, all of you," said a female voice.

Scoobert was standing at the foot of the Mayan pyramid with the best part of Professor Kharon. "It is easy to see that you are the true Inheritors of the Originals."

"Scoobert, I've been looking all over for you," said Scooby-Doo.

"We have been hiding here from the Monstrous Freak," said Kharon's best part in his distorted mirror voice.

"It is very determined to let none leave this world," said Scoobert. "I can see that you have learned much here in the world between worlds. Now you must take that knowledge back with you."

"We're not going anywhere. We can't leave," said Shaggy. "That doohickey that we're supposed to give the little dude here, like, that crazy Freak took it."

"The talisman?" asked Velma. "We need it to get out of this dream world. You mean we're trapped in here? And Scoobert's talking without any extra R's!"

"Velma, that's not Scoobert," said Scooby.

"He's possessed by an extra-dimensional alien, remember? Try to keep up, Velma." Fred said. "We just have to get the talisman back so we can go home."

"But Fred, how do you trap a real monster in a dream world?" asked Velma.

"No worries," said Fred with a chuckle. "The Freak thing just showed us his Achilles heel. Whatever's on top of that pyramid could bring him down. Come on gang, it's trappin' time. Inter-dimensional reality style."

* * *

A short time later, Shaggy and Scooby were running from the monster down a curtained hallway.

"I really, really hate always being the bait!" said Shaggy.

"Me too, it is so unfair," said Scooby.

A cage made of jungle bamboo fell down on the Freak, and a rope dragged it out into the light of the pyramid.

"Now, let's see who this Monstrous Freak really is," said Fred.

Instead of being unmasked, the creature transformed, turning into an armored conquistador.

"It's... It's... Who is that?" asked Fred.

"If I'm not mistaken, it's El Aguirre, the captain of the Spanish conquistadors," said Velma.

"El Aguirre? But why?" asked Daphne.

"The truth is simple," said El Aguirre. "I did not want you to discover how to destroy the Evil Entity buried deep beneath Crystal Cove."

"Like, that doesn't make any sense," said Shaggy. "I thought you'd be the first person who'd want that thing destroyed."

"No! Do you not see? If you destroy the Entity, myself and my men will be set free from this endless curse. We should never be set free. We must pay for all the horrible atrocities we committed while in service to the Entity."

All of them looked at him, giving a pitying moan.

"I can still hear their screaming. All the screams of the innocent ones. No! We must pay, forever. We can never be set free!"

"Okay, like the old Spanish dude is a little loco in the cabeza," said Shaggy.

"Do not fret. All can be undone," said Scoobert. "All can be forgiven."

"Yes, yes. All can be forgiven," said Kharon.

"That reminds me," said Fred. "Uh, be right back."

Fred went to speak to his former father, accompanied by Daphne. The others went up to the top of the temple where there were golden statues of five heroic figures with a certain resemblance to themselves.

"It was centuries of your Earth time ago," said Scoobert. "They called themselves Ma Cuben Sun Macul, which means the Hunters of Secrets. They were the original group manipulated by the Evil Entity. There were more to follow. The evil one has forever been manipulating hapless souls throughout history in hopes they would set him free from his crystal sarcophagus. The Mystery Incorporated that proceeded yours, the Darrow family's Mystery Fellowship, the Benevolent Lodge of Mystery, the Mystery Gang with their bull Tiny, the Alianza Misterio with their pet skunk El Fuchi, and Fraternitas Mysterium, always four humans and an animal. The Mayan group of friends, the Hunters of Secrets, were the very first. They were the most pure. They realized they were being manipulated, and instead of setting the evil one free, they were about to destroy it with the Heart of the Jaguar. Alas, they were interrupted by El Aguirre and his men who came and took the Crystal Sarcophagus away, thinking it to be a great treasure."

A voice echoed from far away in Velma's head. "Time's up!"

"Jinkies, we're out of time," said Velma.

* * *

They ran back to find Fred, just finished giving his adoptive father his forgiveness and getting his blessing in return.

"Freddy, we have to go," said Velma.

"Yeah, like time's up," said Shaggy. "If we don't leave now, we don't leave ever."

Velma handed the talisman to the best part of Kharon.

"Ha ha! I am going home," said Kharon.

They all joined in a circle around Kharon as a ring of light surrounded them.

"Find the Heart of the Jaguar, Scooby-Doo," said Scoobert. "It is the only way you shall defeat the evil that is buried deep beneath Crystal Cove. Use the Heart of the Jaguar."

* * *

They all found themselves on the floor in Kharon's mansion. They saw his other part merge with him.

"I'm whole again! I'm whole!" Kharon said. "And I couldn't have done it without you meddling kids. You beautiful, brave, wonderful meddling kids."

He began to dance on top of his desk.

Velma said, "Jinkies, after all we've been through, only to find out we've been manipulated by some evil entity? Is that the only reason we're together?"

"Like, yeah. Like, maybe we don't even like each other," said Shaggy.

Daphne said, "It's not that simple. There's the whole other Mystery Inc. gang from the other dimension. They didn't have anything to do with the Evil Entity, right?"

"I don't know," said Velma. "I think that the missing good side we saw back there wasn't yours, Shaggy. I think it was Norville's. He's been acting really strange lately, with that 'bad' side of his. I think he's been tainted."

"Like, maybe they all have," said Shaggy.

"Gang, what are we going to do?" asked Fred.

"The Heart of the Jaguar," said Scooby. "We have to find the Heart of the Jaguar."


	29. Left Behind

Mayor Nettles had called the Coolsville version of the gang into her office, along with Cassidy Williams.

"Do any of you know where your counterparts from this dimension are? Did they say anything to you about leaving the county?" asked the Mayor.

"Nothing," said Frederick.

"They haven't called us," said Anne. "We've been out of touch for a bit."

"What makes you think they left the country?" asked Dace.

"This is sort of embarrassing. I had a nightmare; Scoobert was in it, talking clearly in a female voice. Scoobert said that I needed to go to the Yucatan to help them bring a spear thingy back into the country, back here to Crystal Cove. I realize this makes no sense at all."

"It does make sense," Norville said. "Like, were you in a red-curtained room with black and white zig-zags on the floor?"

"Yes, that's right. How did you know?" asked Nettles.

"I've had some nightmares like that," said Norville.

"So have I," said Cassidy. "I think you need to do what the dream Scoobert said."

Norville said, "Yeah, it may help get my real Scoob back out of the coma."

"I still have doubts about this," said Dace. "We can't just go on a dream. Velma gave me access to her home computer. Let me check something."

After a few moments on the Mayor's desktop PC, she nodded. "Mrs. Dinkley got plane tickets for all of them to the Cancun Airport in Mexico. That serves the Yucatan Peninsula. They flew out yesterday morning."

"This is crazy," Anne said. "Why did they go to Mexico without telling us?"

"They may be upset with me," said Cassidy. "I arrived too late to prevent them losing the Planespheric Disk to Pericles."

"But still..." said Frederick.

"I have a resource to get out there quickly," said Mayor Nettles. "Lt. Tomina Kasanski, an old friend of mine from the Air Force, would fly me out there if I ask her."

"Would you take us with you?" asked Frederick. "If our counterparts need help, we should be there."

"I agree," said Anne. "Even thought it seems like they're shutting us out."

"I'd be happy to take you along," said Nettles.

"We don't have passports in this dimension. Will that be a problem?" asked Dace.

"No, not with my friend flying us," said Nettles. "She has access to a Lockheed C-130, which doesn't need to land at regular airports."

"Not me," said Norville. "I've got to stay here and keep an eye on Scoobert."

"We don't all have to go," said Cassidy. "I'll stay back with you, Norville. Somebody has to be ready in case Pericles makes a move with the Disk."

* * *

The Crystal Cove gang, along with Angie Dinkley, emerged from the ancient Mayan temple carrying the Priestess in the net trap that had caught her. They also had a stone spear, the Heart of the Jaguar.

"It's time to see who this ancient-jade-mask-wearing-weirdo really is," said Shaggy, pulling off the mask.

"Professor Andelusossa?" said the gang in chorus.

"Enrique?" said Angie.

"It was staring us in the face all along," said Velma. "When the men in the village thought I was my Mom, it was clear that no-one was able to forget her all these years. Then there were the vines. This plant is a native to the Yucatan. Only someone with a background in gardening could have cultivated it and made it grow so quickly. Professor Andelusossa's first job was as a gardener. Finally, the vines on the boat were tied to the wheel. The boat was scuttled to make it look like the Professor had been attacked."

"But why, Enrique?" asked Angie.

"For love," said Enrique. "Angie, when you left me that summer decades ago you took my heart with you. Every night since, I have dreamed of you. When you called asking about the Heart of the Jaguar, I knew it was my only chance to lure you back, to find out if you still cared for me."

"So you decided to test her love by crushing her with fast-growing killer plants," said Fred. "Wow! That's exactly what I would do."

"Oh Fred," said Daphne, leaning against him. "That's so romantic. In your usual unique kind of way."

"And I would have gotten away with it, too," said Enrique. "If... you had really loved me."

"Oh Enrique, sweetie," said Angie. "That was all years ago. There's only one man I truly loved, and that's my husband, Mr. Dinkley."

Velma looked on with a smile.

Mrs. Andelusossa pushed through the bushes. "Enrique, you are not a man. You are a fool!"

She spit, hitting Fred. Fred wiped it up with his ascot.

"Mrs. Dinkley, you have won. You can have him."

"But I don't want him," said Angie, pressing her hand.

"Then I'll take him," said a stern voice, as a tall blond woman stepped from the jungle.

"Who are you?" asked Daphne.

"Tomina Kasanski, call sign 'Ice Princess'. I've been tracking you ever since you left Crystal Cove."

"Like, why?" asked Shaggy.

"Because I asked her to," said Mayor Nettles, coming forward from the bushes too.

"Huh?" said everyone.

"Mayor Nettles?" asked Scooby-Doo.

"Lieutenant Kasanski is an old friend of mine from Fighter Weapons School," said Nettles, giving her friend a high-five.

"But why are you following us?" asked Velma.

Janet Nettles explained about the nightmare, adding "Your counterparts convinced me to believe the dream and follow it up. I brought them along, too."

"Hi folks," said Frederick, coming out of the jungle with Dace and Anne.

The Crystal Cove gang tensed and moved together in a group, with Fred in front menacing them with the spear.

"You brought _them_ here?" asked Scooby.

"You show up just as we get the Heart of the Jaguar?" asked Shaggy.

"Are you trying to take it from us to protect the Evil Entity?" asked Fred.

"You don't trust us any more?" asked Dace. "You think we've turned evil?"

"What has happened to you?" asked Anne.

"A few days ago we learned a lot more about what was going on," said Velma. "We met with an expert in the supernatural and entered a shared dream state that was more than just a dream."

"We saw a bunch of people who had lost their good side, like my fake dad," said Fred. "Two of them were Cassidy and Norville. We didn't see all the rooms there, so there could have been more."

"Like, all of you," said Shaggy.

"Reah, all of you," said Scooby.

"Describe the rooms," said Mayor Nettles. "I may have seen them in my dreams."

"Red curtains, zig-zag striped floors, couches, and Greek sculptures," said Daphne. "It's called the Sitting Room."

"That convinces me," said Nettles. "It's real."

"Want me to lock up these phonies?" Kasanski asked. "I'll take the lot, along with your fake-monster prisoner."

"No!" said Frederick.

"Wait!" said Anne.

"How can we prove to you we aren't evil?" asked Dace.

"You can't," said Daphne.

"Cassidy betrayed us, and nearly got Daphne killed," said Fred. "But you must know that already."

Frederick said, "She said you might be mad because she didn't get there in time to stop Pericles from taking the Planespheric Disk."

"That's a total lie," said Shaggy.

"What she really did was snatch the Disk when we had to use it to ransom back Daphne. She was about to be killed by Kriegstaffebots," said Velma.

"I had to grab it back," said Scooby.

"Scoob threw it to Pericles to save her life," said Shaggy.

"You saw two of our group in the Sitting Room, and you say one of them betrayed you," said Dace. "It just happens that neither of them is here to defend themselves."

"Cassidy must have done that on purpose," said Velma. "She didn't want to face us."

"And then you jumped to conclusions about the rest of us. Velma, this isn't like you," said Dace. "How do you know _you_ aren't the ones in the process of getting corrupted?"

"We – we don't," said Velma shakily. "We may have been living under the influence of the Evil Entity all this time."

Angie Dinkley said, "Velma, sweetie, you need to trust yourself. You know in your heart that you're a good person. All of you, look in each other's eyes and you'll see what I sense, that every one of you is all right."

Each moved close to face their counterpart, and took a long look.

"I'm sorry, Dace," said Velma.

"It's all right," said Dace.

"You're okay, Frederick," said Fred.

"Same with you," said Frederick.

"Anne, I can tell you're just like me, still," said Daphne.

"So are you, Daphne," said Anne.

Frederick said, "Cassidy has lied to you before. I believe you that she's gone bad. We'll vet Norville when we get back."

"Vet?" asked Scooby-Doo. "No shots, please."

"He means we'll check him out, Scoob," said Shaggy.

"If you've finished your mutual love fest, let's book," said Kasanski. "My C-130 is on an airstrip 30 klicks from here."

They began the long walk.


	30. Battle of the Bots

Lieutenant Kasanski brought in the C-130 at the Crystal Cove Airport.

"Wow, Mayor Nettles, that was some kind of exciting," said Fred. "I don't think I've ever flown that low entering U.S. airspace before."

"Uh, Fred, let's not mention that to anyone, okay? Especially homeland security," said Nettles.

"We had to get an ancient weapon artifact into the country without being checked by customs," said Dace.

"Not to mention three undocumented visitors from another dimension," said Anne.

From the runway, they watched the Lieutenant's plane take off.

"Like, watching a big, majestic plane soar off into the heavens, hoo-hoo, it makes me feel a need," said Shaggy. "I feel the need for-"

"Pizza!" said Scooby-Doo.

Frederick held up his hand. "Hold on, guys, we have urgent business."

"More urgent than pizza?" asked Shaggy. "Like, is that possible?"

"We have to find Norville and Cassidy, and make sure they're not up to something," said Velma. "Both could have been corrupted by the Evil Entity."

"I tried calling them on my cell phone a few minutes ago," said Daphne. "No answer from either one."

* * *

The two gangs, Mrs. Dinkley, and the Mayor rode into town in the Mystery Machine the local gang had left at the airport. They dropped off Mrs. Dinkley at Crystal Cove Spook Museum, then drove on.

Fred turned the corner, and slowed when he saw turned-up asphalt in the middle of the road.

Daphne asked, "What happened to the street?"

"It looks like some kind of earthquake," said Fred.

"Like, zoinks! Where is everybody?" asked Shaggy.

Sheriff Stone ran into the street shouting, forcing Fred to slam on the brakes to avoid hitting him. Everyone got out of the car and helped the frightened man back to his office in the police station.

"Sheriff, what happened to everyone?" asked Nettles.

"There I was, talking to my deputy, and whoosh! He was gone. Pulled down below," said Stone.

"Please, Bronson, you're scaring me," said Nettles.

"I'm scaring myself. And I hate it," said Stone, beginning to pound on the wall with a chair. "I hate it! Make it stop!"

With a rumble the ground opened up below him, and both the Sheriff and the Mayor fell below ground, screaming.

"Something pulled them under," said Shaggy.

"Don't move. Or breathe," said Scooby-Doo.

"Scooby's 's down there seems to be attracted to movement and sound. Everyone stay perfectly still," said Fred.

A burrowing path came into the room, then turned around and went away. Shaggy and Scooby stopped holding their breaths and gasped for air.

"What could it be?" Anne whispered.

"It reminds me of a digging machine in Nevada that people thought was a pack of giant worms," said Dace.

"My mom!" said Velma. "We left her back at the Broken Spine!"

They raced back there, but it was too late. The floor of the museum bookstore was broken up and Angie Dinkley was nowhere to be seen.

* * *

At Fred's house, Velma led a meeting.

Velma said, "Focus, people. There are lives at stake. Something has taken my mom and the rest of Crystal Cove."

"It even took the rother me from the hospital," said Scooby. (They had checked at the hospital on the way, and found it devastated.)

"What kind of horrible monster would snatch a dog in a coma?" asked Shaggy.

"We don't know that," said Anne. "Probably Norville and Cassidy moved him out of harm's way."

"I hope," said Scooby.

"Unless they all got taken together," suggested Dace.

Scooby moaned and put his head under his front paws.

"Quick, Scoob," said Shaggy. "Drown your sorrows in this pint of triple fudge cookie dough caramel chip."

Scooby gulped it down. "Thanks, Raggy. I needed that."

"As I was saying," said Velma. "I suspect this mystery is connected to the Evil Entity buried under Crystal Cove."

Velma explained that they were facing an extra-dimensional intelligent being, and that this time period, called Nibiru, was especially dangerous because the alignment of the known planets, plus an undiscovered Planet X, was weakening the dimensional barriers. The Heart of the Jaguar was supposed to be able to destroy this evil entity and undo all of its evil. The four keys they had found with the help of the Planespheric Disk (an old pistol, a conquistador helmet, a pottery bowl, and a piece of old sail cloth.) would somehow help them get to the location.

"It feels like we know a lot and nothing at the same time," said Daphne.

"Like, welcome to our world. Ha ha ha! Right, Scooby-Doo?" said Shaggy.

The pair began to dance around the room, chanting, "We know nothing and we love it! Hoo hoo! Hoo hoo!"

A rumbling came from below.

Frederick called out, "Shaggy, Scooby, stop! Don't move."

Everyone jumped up and clung to the walls as the rumbling grew nearer and louder. Then it stopped.

"Like, I think it's gone," said Shaggy.

"Or not," said Scooby.

A huge burrowing machine with a drill at the front came out of the ground, and robots began to emerge from it. Robots they had all seen before.

"Kriegstaffebots!" said Daphne.

They took cover as the bots began shooting.

Fred said, "You robots made a big mistake. This is **my** house."

With the push of a buttom on a remote control he activated traps, two spinning saw blades and a razor-sharp pendulum, that sliced the robots to pieces.

"Good one, Fred," said Frederick. "Just what I would have done if this had been my house."

"Thanks," said Fred.

"Professor Pericles' evil robots. I should have known," said Velma.

Fred said, "If they're coming from underground, there's only one thing we can do."

"Like, stay above ground?" asked Shaggy.

"No, we're gonna get to the bottom of this mystery," said Frederick.

"Like, ooh, boy," said Scooby and Shaggy in chorus.

* * *

They went down in the tunnels with flashlights. Scooby-Doo's sharp ears soon led them to an enormous underground cave. The missing townspeople (including the parents of the local gang) were enslaved as diggers. They were being watched by Kreigstaffebots on a wooden tower.

There was no sign of Norville, Cassidy, or Scoobert.

Velma looked with binoculars. "There's Mr. E. The rest of the original Mystery Incorporated must be in that tent."

They moved closer to try to learn more.

Velma said, "Good thing I had Jason Wyatt help me install this sound amplifying antenna in my binoculars."

Anne asked, "Who's Jason Wyatt? I don't think we've met him."

"He's a nerdy guy who had a crush on me once," said Velma. "When I rejected him, his mom tried to kill us with a robotic Fright Hound. Jason's an ally now and he's as good with tech as his mom. Anyway, let's listen in."

From inside the tent came voices. The first was that of Ricky Owens, better known as Mr. E. "I've received an encoded message from Cassidy. The extra-dimensional Shaggy Rogers is with her. She says that since we have the Disk now, they are willing to join forces and work with us."

The listeners gasped at this new evidence of betrayal.

"Can you trust them? Would they really give up and join us?" asked Brad Chiles.

"I don't know about that Rogers, but Cassidy would never give up," said Judy.

The cold, German-accented voice of Professor Pericles said, "Give her a positive response, but when they show themselves we will eliminate them both."

"You'd actually kill Cassidy?" asked Mr. E.

"Of course," said Pericles. "Anyone who crosses me gets eliminated."

"Um, Professor Pericles, you promised you would surgically alter me back to my stunning self by now," said Judy. "I'm so old like this. How long do you plan on making me suffer?"

"I don't have time for such things. The treasure is almost within our gasp," said Pericles.

"Besides, I'm the one who's suffering, not you, Judy," said Brad.

"How are you suffering, Brad?"

"Well, I'm the one who has to look at you all day, every day."

"That was very hurtful, Brad."

"I'm sorry, Judy. I mean, grandma."

"Well, at least I'm not walking around with that outrageous chin, Bradley."

Mr. E cut in. "Look at you, you're all coming unraveled. The closer we get to that treasure, the more the curse takes over."

The people above discussed what they heard.

"Like, the old Mystery Incorporated dudes are totally losing it," said Shaggy.

"And that seems to include Cassidy," said Anne.

"And Norville," said Frederick.

"They may be planning a ruse to get the Planespheric Disk back," said Fred. "Cassidy wanted it back more than anything."

"Including my life," said Daphne.

"But if they come anywhere near Pericles he'll have them killed," said Dace. "Corrupted or not, we have to find them and warn them."

While they were talking, Pericles had placed the Disk on a pedestal and shined light through it, creating a pointer to one spot on the map.

"Seig! Seig!" said Pericles. "The time has almost arrived. Focus all the digging on that spot. And, Ricky, when the entrance is found, have my kriegstaffebots destroy all the workers. They have outlived their usefulness."

ME: You monster. I'm not your trained monkey. I won't do it. I won't be a part of this madness anymore.

Pericles inflicts pain with his cobra venom implant in Ricky's spine.

Mr. E yelled in pain. "Yes, Pro—master. Whatever you command. I will have the kriegstaffebots destroy them all. Not one person from Crystal Cove will be left alive."

Daphne whispered urgently to the others. "We're running out of time. We have to find the crystal sarcophagus and destroy the evil entity before Pericles gets his dirty little beak on it."

Velma said, "First things first, we've got to find a way to stop them before they destroy my mom and everyone else we know."

After a brief digression about whether to call the townsfolk Crystal Cove-ites, Crystal Covians, or Crystal Covers, the two gangs prepared to head out.

Fred held Daphne back for a moment.

"Freddy, what is it?" asked Daphne.

"Daphne, I don't want to waste any more time. I know how precious that is, how precious you are. I just want to say, in case none of us make it through this alive..."

"Freddy, no."

"Daphne, I wanna say it. I love you, Daphne Blake. You're my girl and always will be. I haven't always been able to tell you. In fact, I've been kind of stupid about my emotions and..."

"Freddy. Hush. You've been perfect. A lot of it was my fault. I put a lot of pressure on you. It wasn't fair. I'm sorry. You've always been so wonderful."

They kissed. Inspired by this breakthrough, Anne grabbed Frederick and kissed him, too. After a happy surprised moment, his arms went around her and he kissed her back.

Velma gave a happy sigh, and so did Dace.

* * *

Scooby and Shaggy were disguised as kriegstaffebots, using parts from the robots Fred had defeated earlier. The two mingled with the prisoners and spread the word for them to rebel and escape.

Meanwhile, both Mystery Machines were armored and decked with weapons for the battle, and both were driven into a tunnel that led in from the river.

Professor Pericles watched the final breakthrough to an elaborate round metal door in the cave wall.

"The doorway at last. Now I can finally claim what is rightfully mine- ultimate power!" said Pericles.

Scooby and Shaggy lined up with several other bots at the door.

"Like, Scoob, that is one big, crazy door," said Shaggy.

Pericles noticed them, and gave a hard stare through Shaggy's goggles.

"Like, danger. Danger. Run, will Robinson. Like, run!" cried Shaggy.

"Kriegstaffebots, destroy him!" ordered Pericles.

Bots surrounded Shaggy, just as the Mystery Machines came charging in. The cars smashed through the line of bots. The robots pursued the cars, leaving the prisoners temporarily unguarded.

"Oh! Now's the time," said Sheriff Stone. "Somebody's got to start the uprising. Looks like that somebody's got to be me."

"No, Bronson, it's too dangerous," said Mayor Nettles.

"I have to. For all the times I wasn't the best sheriff. For all the times I arrested the wrong guy. For all the times I need you to know how much I care about you. I have to because I love you, Janet Mayor Nettles."

He kissed her with a "Mwah," then said "Ok, people, rise up! Throw off your chains. Attack!"

The fight began, with the prisoners clobbering the bots with their digging tools and dumping rocks on them.

Shaggy got hit by loose robot head, and put up his hands. "Like, mommy!"

"Shaggy!" cried Scooby-Doo, jumping in on springs onto Shaggy's shoulders. "No! You mess with my Shaggy, you mess with me."

Shaggy spun around, allowing Scooby to spray the robots with machine-gun fire. They all went down.

"Ahh! Like, Scoob, pal, you did it. You saved me! It's ok. It's ok, buddy. Good boy. Down, boy. Easy, boy," said Shaggy.

"They drew first blood, not me," said Scooby.

Broken robots were thrown in a pile by the former slaves.

"It's not over yet," said the Sheriff. "We have to get these people to safety. Listen up, everybody. Follow me to freedom!"

For a while the two Mystery Machines prevailed in their battle. Then the bots shoot down stalactites, breaking the cars' weapons and finally blocking them in. Bots surrounded them and began shooting.

"Goodbye, beautiful," said Fred and Frederick to their respective vehicles.

Each pushed a button and the Mystery Machines exploded, taking out the surrounding bots.

Scooby and Shaggy yelled in shock.

"Freddy! Velma!" cried Shaggy. "And, like, the other Freddy and Velma!"

"Daphne! No!" called Scooby. "And Ranne, too!"

They cried in each other's arms as another car pulled up. Fred offered a handkerchief for Scooby-Doo to blow his nose.

"Huh? You're ok?" asked Shaggy.

Scooby tackled Fred in a hug.

"But, like, if you're in here, who's in there?" asked Shaggy.

"Nobody. It was all a part of Fred's well-planned attack," said Velma.

"I rigged a remote control our Mystery Machines so we'd be able to attack the kriegstaffebots without any of us being in harm's way," explained Fred.

"Our Mystery Machine already had advanced remote controls," said Frederick. "A villain put them in so the car would turn against us, but today we put them to good use."

"I'm glad we remembered to take out the device Dr. Quest gave us to get back to our dimension," Dace said.

Fred picked up one flower-decorated wheel. "Oh, my gosh, gang. What have I done?"

"What you had to do. What you always do. Turned traps into a fighting chance to live," said Daphne.

* * *

Escaped from the battle, Professor Pericle, Brad, Judy were at the door.

"All my years of searching to find this door. I have done it," said Pericles. "It will lead us to the treasure and more. Soon, very soon, the world as we know it will never be the same again. Liebe!"

The evil parrot placed the Disk on the center of the door, making it open.

"Professor, won't the kids just follow us in?" asked Brad.

"Yes, they will. Und I need them to. I need Scooby-Doo. If I'm to take control of the great power below, the dog must be destroyed at just the right moment. Come, my destiny awaits," said Pericles.

Ordered by the parrot in German, the bots followed, carrying a large box.

* * *

The gang prepared to go in also, with the four key objects and the spear in a duffle bag.

"All right, gang, now let's see where this uber mystery really leads. Ready?" asked Fred.

"Ready," said Anne.

"Ready," said Daphne.

"Like, ready," said Shaggy.

"Ready," said Dace and Velma together.

"Yes," said Frederick.

"Professor Pericles is gonna regret the day he ever messed with Scooby... Dooby... Doo!"


	31. Elements and Evil

The glowing force of the Evil Entity lit up the eyes of the pearl-filled crystal sarcophagus.

"Soon! Soon I will be free! The time of the Nibiru is nearly at hand. The planets are coming into alignment, working toward my release, as are you. Even though you know it not, I forged you. You are my proudest creation. So come now, children of Nibiru. Be strong and set your master free so that I may bathe this world in fire!"

* * *

The remnants of the old Mystery Inc. went down a winding rocky path deep into an enormous cave, followed by a troop of kreigstaffebots carrying a box.

Brad said, "Judy, I have to say, this dark cave is doing wonders for your complexion."

"Really? It's so nice of you to notice. Thank you, Brad," said Judy, preening her hair.

Brad smirked. "You're welcome, Judy. In this light, I can barely see your multitude of wrinkles and your mouth full of decaying teeth."

"Huh? That's it, Bradley!" said Judy, She jumped onto him, and started punching his back.

"Stop it! You two are behaving like children," said Professor Pericles.

"The cursed treasure is tearing us apart. If Cassidy comes, she'll see us all going to pieces," said Mr. E.

"Oh, Ricky, you always lacked the stomach for greatness. We will deal with Cassidy if she dares to show herself," said Pericles. To the robot he ordered, "Forward! Mach schnell!"

From above, the new Mystery Inc. (and their dimensional counterparts) watched with binoculars.

"They're on the move," said Fred.

"Let's go," said the other Fred.

While the team headed down (with Shaggy and Scooby-Doo sharing their last hamburger) another group watched from above them.

"We'll make our move soon," said one of the three shadowy figures.

* * *

The enemy group stood before a huge, ornate door with the enormous figure of a wind god carved into it.

"Beautiful," said Pericles. "Das Haus der wahren Schönheit."

Brad said, "I'm sorry to ask, Professor Pericles, but..."

Judy interrupted, "What are we waiting for?"

"The kinder," said Pericles. "I know they are out there following us. Give them a minute. They will soon understand their part in all this. But they must hurry. The planets are nearly in full alignment. The time of Nibiru is almost at hand."

* * *

Above them on a rocky outcropping, Shaggy looked through the binoculars. "Like, dig those crazy symbols on those gigantico doors."

Scooby stuttered, "T-the the dream world."

"The what world?" asked Shaggy.

"The dream world," said Velma. "The keys. Everything we saw, it finally makes sense."

"Professor Kharon did say that the dream world would show us what we needed to find," said Daphne.

"You said something about that on the flight back into the country," said Dace. "I still find it hard to believe."

Fred said, "Each of us saw one of the keys in a frozen scene from the past."

Daphne said, "The fourth key is the element of air. The orangutan was blowing the scrap of sailcloth into the air."

Scooby said, "The third key is the element of earth. The stinky skunk was kicking dirt into the bowl."

Fred said, "The second key is the element of water. The bull was drinking from the conquistador's helmet."

Velma said, "And the first key is the element of fire. Mr. Darrow was lighting a candle with the flint from the pistol. Each one of the four keys opens a gate leading down. That first gate is covered in alchemy symbols for air."

"But if that's the first gate, why is it attached to the fourth key?" asked Anne.

"Because it's in reverse," said Fred.

"Of course it is. Like, why would any of this make sense?" asked Shaggy.

"It makes perfect sense, Shaggy. We're working outside in," said Velma. "The first key to lock up the gates is the last to unlock them."

She illustrated by placing the keys on the ground. "This is the fourth gate. The next one will be the third. And then the second. And then ultimately the first."

"And then the Evil Entity," said Daphne.

Shaggy and Scooby whimpered.

They heard the voice of Professor Pericles. "All right, you Mystery Incorporated. I know you're out there and you have the key."

The gangs gasped and ducked behind the rocks.

They heard Mr. E. "Even if the Mystery Incorporated kids are out there, what makes you think you can make them do what you want?"

"Because, my dear Ricky, everyone has their weakness," said Pericles. He ordered the robots. "Öffne den Koffer."

The robots opened the box and pulled out Marcie Fleach.

"Marcie! No!" cried Velma.

"Good kinder," said Pericles. "Now come cooperate and I will not harm the Hot Dog Water."

"I'll do it. I'll go," said Fred, who was holding the sailcloth, the fourth key.

"No, we all go together. No splitting up. Never again," said Daphne.

"All of us will go too," said Frederick.

Anne and Dace nodded. They all began to move down toward the enemy.

* * *

A winged devil woman swooped down from above them. Under her right arm she carried someone in a space suit. Under her left arm was a metallic-looking canine.

"For daring the forbidden path, you now will face Dark Lilith's wrath," chanted the woman.

"Jinkies, Dark Lilith?" asked Dace. "Who or what is that?"

"Never seen her before," said Velma.

Dark Lilith dropped the space-suited man like a bomb onto the group of Mr. E, Brad, and Judy. He easily landed on his feet and lashed out with incredible strength, felling them all. He gave a high-pitched cackle.

"Zoinks! The Space Kook!" said Shaggy.

Lilith dropped the dog onto the group of kreigstaffebots where Professor Pericles was, perched on the shoulder of one of them. The dog tore ferociously into the bots, ripping them apart with claws and jaws,

"The Fright Hound!" moaned Scooby-Doo.

"Jeepers. But... we destroyed it, didn't we?" asked Daphne.

Lilith herself attacked the bots who were holding Marcie hostage, one on each arm. With surgical precision she snapped off their arms without harming Marcie. With enhanced-strength martial arts she made short work of the bots around her.

"Thanks, Lilith," said Marcie. "Whoever you are, I'm glad you're putting my work to good use."

Professor Pericles tried to fly away from the combat, but the Fright Hound leaped and pinned him to the ground by one wing.

"Fright Hund, you once helped me to escape from the asylum," said Pericles. "We should be allies. Let me go. Nibiru. Nibiru. Ni-"

The Hound raised a paw and smashed it down.

"No," said Rick Jones softly.

The two gangs rushed up, but the battle was over. Velma ran to Marcie and threw her arms around her. They quickly tied up the human villains.

Fred said, "Thanks, you guys. Are you going to show us who you really are? I'd hate to try to trap you."

The Space Kook took of his helmet and the glowing skull mask beneath.

"Norville?" said Frederick, Anne, and Dace in chorus.

"Like, I needed an edge if I was going to take on kriegstaffebots. The Space Kook suit was in good working order in the Spook Museum. That fake alien used it on us, remember? So I sneaked in and took it while you guys were in Mexico."

Velma said, "I should have guessed. Then the devil woman must be..."

"Me," said Cassidy, removing her mask.

"Where did you get that?" asked Daphne.

"It's actually a power suit that I designed," said Marcie. "I re-purposed my old Manticore suit with its flying technology and strength enhancers. I made it for self-defense, but Pericles captured me before I could use it."

"I found it when I went looking for you," said Cassidy. "It was perfect for a rescue mission."

"I'm glad you pulled off the rescue, but that was an incredible risk to take with Marcie's life," said Velma.

"I was going to be killed as soon as my usefulness was over," said Marcie. "As far as I'm concerned you did great, Cassidy and Norville."

"But who is the Fright Hound?" asked Scooby nervously.

Norville slid the metal mask off the Fright Hound, revealing the face of Scoobert, with his eyes still closed.

"We had to fight but we couldn't leave Scoobert helpless. I called Jason Wyatt; he was able to build a robot exoskeleton with spare parts for the old Fright Hound that his mom left behind in her workshop."

"Is Scoobert still in a coma?" Anne asked.

"Yes, but he has a combat program that lets him carry out missions under my control," said Norville.

"Dude, that's like, way creepy," said Shaggy. You've made your Scoob into a killer zombie robot."

"It was the only way," said Norville. "I couldn't leave him."

Fred said, "Norville and Cassidy, we need to tell you something. The local gang, all of us, we had a shared visit to the dream world, a place called the Sitting Room. We saw a bunch of people who had lost their good sides... including my fake dad. He was actually a nice guy before the Evil Entity messed with him."

Velma said, "We also saw you and Cassidy there. We think you've lost your good sides, too."

"We just beat the villains and saved you, and you tell us that?" asked Cassidy.

"It's not your fault, and you might not feel any different, but..." said Anne.

"I think," said Velma. "It would be better if the two of you went back into town now. We'll go on and stop the Evil Entity. That's supposed to end his evil influence. You'll be yourselves again."

"No," said Cassidy. "You're going to need all the help you can get. We're not missing this."

"Something's different, can't you see? You killed Pericles," said Dace.

"He deserved it," said Cassidy.

"We've never killed anyone before," said Daphne.

"Says the team that's heading off to kill the Evil Entity," said Norville.

"You've got us there," said Scooby.

"All right," said Fred. "You can come, but behave yourselves."

"Cassidy, listen," said Mr. E. "The old Mystery Incorporated has been corrupted by the curse. You have, too. Look into your heart and you'll know I'm right. You can't face the Entity like this."

"I don't trust you. Ricky," said Cassidy. "You're trying to talk me out of this because you want our mission to fail. Look at you: helping Pericles enslave the town, going along with him to free the Evil Entity, helping to kidnap this young woman."

"I expected better from you, E," said Marcie.

"So did I, little girl, so did I. But Pericles forced me. He put cobra larvae in my spine and he could put me in pain with the touch of a button."

"We heard him hurting you," said Velma. "And then we heard you agree to kill everyone in Crystal Cove to save your own skin."

"I'm not going to let you talk me out of this, Ricky," said Cassidy.

"Let them go," said Brad. "They'll fail, and we who are faithful will be rewarded."

"Right Brad. I'll get my beauty back, and power. But I'll remember how you treated me when I looked this way. We're through."

"Mom, Dad, I don't need any more of this," said Fred. "Let's go, gang."

"All right," said Frederick. "I figured out how to open the door. It's a big old trap, if you don't cover the mouth with the sailcloth before working the lever."

* * *

Soon they were walking along suspension bridges in the air between floating rocks. Marcie and Velma stayed close together to talk.

"I'm glad you're okay," Velma said. "That must have been terrible."

Marcie said, "V, all the time I was in that box I was planning: I was going to try to grab Pericles and use him as my hostage to buy you a head start through the portal."

"I'm glad you didn't have to," said Velma. "It would have been a terrible risk."

"It would probably have gotten me killed," said Marcie frankly. "But it would've been worth it to save you... I mean to save the world."

"Marcie, I'm not sure... this may be too big for us. In case we don't make it, I have to tell you something."

"Yes, V?"

"We used to be enemies, then we became friends. Now, coming so close to losing you makes me realize something. I really like you, Marcie. I mean, 'like' like."

"I've waited so long to hear you say that! Even when we were supposedly enemies, I was secretly jealous that your friends and mysteries took all your time."

"We won't let that happen anymore," said Velma.

"Aww," said Scooby, as the two embraced.

* * *

They came to a rocky door with unbalanced scales in front of it.

"Like, the second gate," said Shaggy.

"Hmm. Somebody hand me the mortar bowl," said Fred.

"Like, Fred is really in his element here, huh?" said Shaggy.

"Pun intended," said Daphne.

"Elementary, my dear Dinkley," whispered Marcie to Velma.

Fred scooped earth into the bowl and placed it on the scales. The door opened.

"Like, that was very anti-climactic," said Shaggy.

As soon as they all entered the door, a giant rock monster appeared behind them with a clatter.

"Huh? Like, zoinks!" said Shaggy.

"Rock monster!" said Scooby.

"We've got this," said Cassidy.

The combined strength of Dark Lilith, Space Kook, and the Fright Hound quickly reduced the monster to rubble.

* * *

Soon they came to a wall of water, with stairs leading up to a door.

"Huh? The third gate," said Anne.

"And the second key. Water," said Dace.

"Looks like there's only one place to fill it up," said Frederick. "May I?"

He took the conquistador's helmet and filled it with water from the wall. It instantly turned liquid, and the door flipped over into a boat. It might have been too full and capsized with the twelve of them, except that Dark Lilith was able to grab Space Kook and Fright Hound. She flew with them after the boat, which shot down a rocky channel and over a waterfall.

They landed in a sea, with water in every direction. A current carried them along and soon even the waterfall was out of sight.

"Like, dudes, where are we?" asked Shaggy.

"And for that matter, where the heck have we been for the last two keys?" asked Daphne.

"We're traveling through different dimensions," said Velma.

"An intriguing feature of string theory and advanced physics is that it predicts extra dimensions. In classical string theory, the number of dimensions is not fixed by any consistency criterion," said Marcie.

"What are they talking about?" Shaggy asked.

"You're asking me?" said Scooby.

Dace said, "The Planespheric disk not only maps three-dimensional space, but the fourth dimension of time and beyond. Worlds between worlds."

"Like, dudes, that's all well and good..." said Shaggy.

"Even if we don't understand a word of it," said Scooby.

"But, like, how are we gonna find the last gate?" asked Shaggy.

"Yeah. All I see is water. Endless water," said Scooby.

"Jinkies. Shaggy and Scooby are right," said Dace.

"We're trapped in the middle of nowhere with no way out," said Anne.

"Hold on, " said Cassidy, who was still flying above them. "From up here I can see down into the water. Something is glowing; it may be the portal to the fire dimension."

"That's it! The gate is down," said Velma.

Frederick put his head underwater, and when he came back up he said, "I see it. I think."

"Only one way to find out for sure," said Fred. "Come on, gang."

* * *

They swam down, with Cassidy and Norville helping the armored Scoobert. The armor was heavy but well-sealed, so there were no electrical problems. When they reached the surface, everything flipped so that up was down.

"Freaky," said Scooby-Doo.

"Over there," said Anne, pointing to a huge red gate covered in symbols of flames. "The last gate."

"This is it. We made it, gang," said Fred.

"I don't like what's waiting for us beyond that door," said Velma.

"Evil," said Scooby.

"Pure evil. That we must destroy with the Heart of the Jaguar," said Shaggy.

"Let's get this done," said Scooby.

"Right," said Cassidy.

"Wait," said Velma. "If things prove to be bigger than us, I just want to tell you guys..."

"No. Nothing is bigger than us. It's the twelve of us. We can do this... together," said Daphne.

They all put their hands together. Then they walked to the door. Several skeletons in conquistador armor were heaped outside it.

"Here, let me do the honors," said Shaggy.

Taking the flintlock pistol, Shaggy fired it at the door. The shot ricocheted, but the door didn't open.

"I don't get it. The key didn't work," said Frederick.

"That's because the flintlock itself isn't the key. Look, it's the flint," said Daphne.

"Daphne, you figured it out, you do the honors," said Fred.

Daphne placed the flint into a niche in the door, which melted away in flames. Inside there were pools of lava everywhere and the cave was filled with dull red glow.

"Whoa. This place is like mega creepy and scary. Is it too late to turn back?" asked Shaggy.

"Yes. Way too late," said Scooby-Doo.

* * *

The found the crystal sarcophagus on a heap of gold and other treasures.

Scooby-Doo held the spear over it. "What do I do now?"

A voice spoke, deep and tinged with evil: "Open the sarcophagus."

"It-it spoke," said Shaggy.

"Turn the lock. Set me free."

"We aren't here to free you," said Fred.

"We're here to destroy you," said Velma.

"Destroy me? Never. You have no choice. This is your destiny. Everything you have done, you have done for me. I brought you together as I brought all those together before you. I made you into friends."

"Huh?" said Shaggy and Scooby together.

"Forced you into a group. I am the author of your every hope and dream. All to this purpose: to set me free."

"Not all of us," said Frederick. "Half of us are from another world where there was nothing like you."

"Not so. There was a version of me that brought you together in your world. I sense that your memories have been patched by the anunnaki. You also are children of Nibiru, and through you I will devour both universes."

"Like, is this - this evil telling the truth? Like our whole life, our friendship has been a lie?" asked Shaggy.

"Maybe everything we think we know, none of it is real," said Fred.

"No. I refuse to believe it. My love for Fred is real. I know it," said Daphne, reaching for Fred's hand. "And I love you all. You're my best friends."

"That goes for our gang, too," said Anne, reaching out a hand to Frederick.

Cassidy said, "My gang was corrupted and lost. Guys, what it's saying is starting to get to me, making me want to free it."

Norville held her tightly. "No, Cassidy. We love each other. You have a place in our gang from now on."

Marcie said, "I know I was corrupted. As the Manticore I destroyed property and kidnapped people. But now that I know V loves me, I can hang on."

"Right, Marcie," said Velma. "Every word this thing spits out is a lie. Destroy it."

"This ends now. We'll never set you free," said Scooby-Doo, raising the Heart of the Jaguar.

"You've missed one thing," said the Entity. "A back door in the program of the Fright Hound. Nibiru. Nibiru. Nibiru."

Scoobert knocked the spear from Scooby's paws, then jumped on top of the sarcophagus and pushed open a clasp, revealing a dial. With one paw he turned it.

A hole in the sarcophagus opened. Tendrils of dark force emerged from the opening. The tendrils formed a face with glowing green eyes as the monster grew.

It laughed, the most evil laugh they had ever heard. "Free! Free! I have been trapped too long. Now I must have a vessel for my darkness. And here is a perfect empty vessel, already used by one anunnaki for a time. She is hiding in the Sitting Room and the vessel is free for me."

The Evil Entity reached its tendrils for Scoobert.

"Hey! What are you doing to Scoob?" shouted Norville.

The armored exoskeleton broke off of Scoobert as he enlarged and grew tentacles.

"The dog is gone. I am flesh now! Flesh! I hunger. I will feast upon all of you and grow powerful enough to break my bonds."

The Scoob-Entity reached for them.


	32. Undone and Redone

They were all in shock, but they pulled back before the Scoob-Entity could grab them.

"Nooo! What have I done?" cried Norville. "I killed him! I killed my Scooby-Doo! I was an idiot to bring him here in that stupid robot suit. Why did you let me do that, Cassidy?"

The Entity said, "You fool, I told you this body was an empty vessel. The dog died in the hospital days ago. He only remained in a 'coma' because an anunnaki wanted to use his physical form."

"Then it was the fight with the cattle monsters that killed him," said Cassidy.

"That means it was the Crystal Cove gang's fault," said Norville. "You let Nova fall out of the helicopter in their path, and Scoobert was killed saving her."

"Yes," said the Entity. "This is all their fault. What are you going to do about it?"

Cassidy grabbed onto him. "Baby, hang on. Don't let it get into your mind. I feel myself slipping, too. Your love's my anchor."

"I've never loved anyone like I loved Scoob, and now look at him!" said Norville.

"Bring them to me that I may feed on them," said the Evil Entity. "Your suits will give you the strength."

"Yes master," said Norville. He spread the arms of his Space Kook suit to push the others forward.

"We shouldn't have come. We should have listened to Ricky," said Cassidy in despair.

"You are now my minions. Bring the others to me," said the Entity.

"Yes, master," said Norville and Cassidy together.

"Run!" said Shaggy.

Everyone ran and scattered, except for Marcie.

Marcie said, "It's not smart to attack someone with their own technology."

She addressed the Lilith armor. "Lilith: grab and lock. Lilith: fly 10 meters up, 65 degrees right. Lilith: emergency shut-down."

Dark Lilith grabbed onto the Space Kook, flew high into the air, and then both dropped like a rock. They landed on heap of treasure.

"That drop should be far enough to disable the armor but not hurt Norville too much," said Marcie.

The treasure shifted under the two "minions," and they rolled directly in front of the Evil Entity.

"You have failed me. My hunger cannot wait," said the Entity.

His tentacles smashed down on them, tearing off their costumes, and he devoured them both.

Marcie screamed, "Shaggy! Cassidy!"

Scooby-Doo came running back, overcome with rage and loss, and leaped at the Entity with the Heart of the Jaguar in his mouth. The stone tip shattered and the spear shaft dropped to the ground.

"You are powerless against me," said the Evil Entity. "Now, you are next!"

Scooby ran before the Entity could get him.

Marcie said, "I-I miscalculated. I didn't mean for that to happen..."

"Do you think that any use of a monster suit by a corrupted one is free of my influence?" asked the Entity.

"I'm really nothing but a puppet?" said Marcie.

"You belong to me, Hot Dog Water. You became the Manticore because of me, and now you have fed me two friends. They all hate you now. There is nothing left for you but to come to me."

With a despairing sob, Marcie began to stagger toward the monster, but Velma came running after her and grabbed her in a hug. "Marcie listen to me: I love you. It's not your fault. Let me be your anchor. You belong with us."

The whole of the Crystal Cove Mystery Incorporated gathered around Marcie.

They had gotten too close to the Entity; his tentacles stretched out and struck. A bright force-bubble formed around them so that the monster couldn't touch them.

"Like, what's happening?" asked Shaggy.

Everyone fled back behind the rocks. Marcie seemed to have recovered her mind.

"We've taken terrible casualties, but it's not over," said Fred. "Stay back, everyone. It's tethered to the sarcophagus and it can't get to us. If we don't feed it, it can't get stronger."

"Keeping your distance cannot stop me now," said the Scoob-Entity. "I have gained enough power to get more for myself. I shall feast upon all of Crystal Cove!"

Lava shot up from the pools. The ground cracked open under the city and fires spread. The streets, buildings, and inhabitants of Crystal Cove dropped into the fire dimension.

"This world shall be mine. Then I shall devour galaxies," said the Entity.

The chest of crystal sarcophagus opened, and a green light shone through the roiling black pearls within.

"Come to me, my minions," said the Evil Entity. "Come to me through this portal. Gather all from this place so that I may feed and grow strong!"

Green fire shot in bursts from the sarcophagus. Bird-faced and dog-faced humanoid minions appeared from the flames. They chased and grabbed the citizens. The gangs watched from hiding as Crystal Cove became a literal Pandemonium.

"We have to do something!" said Anne.

"Yeah, but like, what?" asked Shaggy.

"The Heart of the Jaguar broken. It's just a stick," said Scooby-Doo.

"I bring oblivion to this world!" said the Scoob-Entity, as people were brought by his minions for him to devour.

"It's the end," said Scooby-Doo.

Ex-mayor Jones, Sheriff Stone, and many others were eaten before their eyes.

Fred looked grim. Daphne covered her face and sobbed.

Minions appeared behind them. They ran, but got surrounded at an intersection.

"Like, no way out!" said Shaggy.

"What do we do? Oh, no! Someone, help me please!" called Scooby.

Time froze. Only Scooby was moving. "Huh?"

A glowing form appeared in the air, the form of a large Great Dane.

"Scoobert? But you got turned into an evil monster!"

"I am only the dream projection of an anunnaki, speaking to you with a form you know," said the image in a female voice.

"Can you help me? What do I do? The Heart of the Jaguar is broken."

"The spear was never the Heart of the Jaguar. The Heart of the Jaguar is something else, Scooby-Doo. At the right moment when the heart is clear, you will know what to do."

"Seriously, just tell me what to do!" said Scooby, waving his paws in frustration.

"You will know. You will see. You will feel."

Time started again, and the surrounding minions grabbed them. They were all brought to the Entity as Mayor Nettles was devoured.

"My power approaches the infinite. Then I will absorb you and your friends. I will be… unstoppable!"

It tried to grab them, but force field came up again. The tentacle which the Entity pressed against the field was burned, and it pulled back in pain.

Scooby remembered the voice: "You will know. You will see. You will feel."

"That's it?" said Scooby. He grabbed up the shaft of the Heart of the Jaguar from the ground and started climbing down the rocky surface away from the Entity.

"Where you going, Scoob?" asked Shaggy.

Everyone climbed, following Scooby-Doo.

The Evil Entity didn't immediately notice them leaving because of his hurt tentacle. By the time he did, and ordered his minions after them, they had hidden in a cave.

"The heart is us," said Scooby-Doo. "It's always been us."

"Jinkies, Scooby's right," said Velma. "It can't devour us now and it couldn't touch us earlier, remember?"

"Not when we stood together," said Daphne.

"The five of us," said Fred.

"Our love for one another," said Daphne.

The Crystal Cove gang all put hands (and paws) on the shaft of the spear.

Anne said, "That's good for you, but what about us?"

"We're broken," said Dace.

"We've lost the heart of our gang," said Frederick.

"You're just like us," said Fred. "You're part of the Heart, too."

"We were all shielded back there," said Marcie. "If I can belong, with everything that I've done, so can you."

"Dace, you have a love connection too, like Marcie does," said Shaggy, putting an arm around her.

The Coolsville gang and Marcie put their hands on the spear.

"Like, we're all the true Heart of the Jaguar," said Shaggy.

"And that is something that monster can never take away. Something it can never defeat. It's now or never. Let's do this," said Scooby.

They sneaked closer. More people were still being eaten. Scooby seemed ready to charge.

"Wait," said Velma.

"Huh?" said Scooby.

"Think it through," said Dace. "The entity is still drawing power from the crystal sarcophagus."

"It's some kind of portal between dimensions," said Anne.

"That means if we shatter it, then we cut that thing's lifeline," said Frederick.

The Scoob-Entity spotted them. "Bring me them!"

"Gang, as a team, go!" said Fred.

Dodging and leaping through the oncoming monsters, they worked their way towards the Entity, passing the shaft of the Heart of the Jaguar along like a baton team.

It went from Fred, to Frederick, to Anne, to Daphne, to Marcie, to Velma, to Shaggy, and finally to Scooby, who kicked it into the sarcophagus. It shattered, opening a black portal.

"No, it cannot be! It shall not be!" yelled the Entity.

But it was: the Entity was being pulled in. All of the minions were sucked up. The ruins of the city were pulled toward the black hole.

Fred caught hold of Daphne. Velma caught Shaggy and Marcie, and then they were all caught by Fred. Scooby was caught by the tail by Shaggy. Frederick, Anne, and Dace were all hanging on together at another rocky point some distance away.

As the Entity was destroyed, a bright light blasted out. Everything went pure white.

* * *

Shaggy, Scooby, Fred, Daphne, Velma, and Marcie were standing near the sign leading to downtown Crystal Cove.

"Like, whoa! Dudes!" said Shaggy.

"The town looks untouched. We-we did it!" said Velma.

They all high-fived and cheered.

"We saved Crystal Cove," said Velma.

"We destroyed the monster!" said Fred.

"Wait a second," said Daphne. "Where's the other gang? Did they not make it?"

The celebratory mood instantly chilled.

"I don't know," said Fred. "Maybe they ended up somewhere else in town. We'll find them."

"Like, I hope so," said Shaggy.

"Hey, you kids," said a familiar voice. "Nice to see you out and about on such a lovely day."

It was Sheriff Stone walking hand in hand with three young boys, a girl, and Mayor Nettles.

"Sheriff Stone?" asked Shaggy. "Like, dudes, where did that pint-sized posse come from?"

"Mayor Wife and I are taking the kids down to the beach," said Stone.

"Mayor wife? Kids?" asked Daphne.

"You seem awfully forgetful, Daphne," said the Mayor. "I hope you remember you promised to baby-sit tomorrow night."

Stone said, "Now, Eastwood, Norris and little Billy Jack need to be asleep by 8:00. Linda Carter here can stay up as long as she likes, on account of her being more adorable than her brothers."

"Oh, we better run. See you tomorrow," said the Mayor.

They headed off to the beach.

The group noticed other changes. The Crystal Cove sign now read "The Sunniest Place on Earth" instead of "The Most Hauntedest Place on Earth."

Another sign said: "Visit Historic Darrow Mansion. Dean Daniel Darrow says, 'Stop on by!'". (The Danny Darrow in their memories was an insane hermit who had tried to kill them in the underground ruins of Darrow mansion).

"What's going on?" asked Scooby.

"Scooby, I think that's exactly what we need to find out," said Fred.

* * *

At home, Fred found his uncorrupted parents. They were obstetricians, not trappers. Daphne's parents, the Blakes, were there also, making plans for the wedding of Fred and Daphne (which they enthusiastically approved). Daphne's sisters were also there, underachievers instead of successful career women.

Shaggy found his parents were proud of him for being President of the Chefs Club, winner of the Ultimate Teen Chef award, and National Junior Epicurean of the Year.

On television, Shaggy saw that a thin and fit Ricky Jones was the head of Creationex, a clean fusion company, instead of the environmentally destructive Destroido. Cassidy was happily married to him, and Professor Pericles was a company mascot, repeating the slogan " Creationex makes life better for everyone."

Fred discovered that he was the goalie for the Fighting Urchins soccer team, and popular with both Gary and Ethan. They returned his van, which was plain white with no "Mystery Machine" flower designs on it. His former fake dad, Mr. Jones, was now the coach and principal at Crystal Cove High School, and had a special place in his heart for Fred. Mr. Jones gave Fred a DVD from a colleague at Miskatonic University.

* * *

Marcie and Velma met in Velma's bedroom after each had done some independent investigation.

"Marcie, everyone remembers us being best friends for ages," said Velma.

"We're supposedly working together on this year's Tri-state Olympiad of Science, which we have always won," said Marcie.

"Schrodinger's cat!" said Velma.

"I get you," said Marcie "The many worlds interpretation of quantum physics!"

"That explains everything. Come on, we've got to tell the gang," said Velma.

"That's my girl," said Marcie, following her.

* * *

"With no actuality of wave function collapse, alternative histories and futures are real," Marcie told the gang.

"Huh?" said Scooby-Doo.

"She means we know why everything's different," said Velma. "We destroyed the entity and by destroying it, it was as if it never existed. So, everything it touched, all the evil, all of the curse, all of the losers in rubber masks (no offense, Marcie) and the dumb monster attractions, none of it ever happened. By destroying the evil entity, we created an entirely different time-line."

"Our neighbors, our families, they've never been negatively influenced by the evil entity," said Daphne.

"What about the other gang?" asked Fred.

"They were brought here by Mr. E because of a conflict with Pericles, so that never happened either," said Velma. "They must be safe in their own world."

"I'm gonna miss them, especially Dace," said Shaggy. "It's come undone, all of it. Our actions created a better world where we all have normal and productive lives."

"Lives that really aren't ours," said Daphne.

"Worse than that, gang, we've created a world without mysteries," said Fred.

"What kind of a world doesn't have mysteries?" asked Velma.

"A world where we don't belong," said Fred sadly.

"One second, I want to search for something," said Velma, getting out her computer. "Coolsville…"

A moment later she said, "Guys, look at this!"

There was a page showing the Coolsville Mystery Museum. Attractions included figures of The Creeper, Space Kook, and the Ghost of Captain Cutler.

"Like, how is that possible?" asked Shaggy.

"I think, since there were people from two worlds involved in the wave collapse, that somehow we ended up in a combined world," said Velma.

"I'm going to try to call the contact number on that site," said Marcie, getting out her phone. "Hello, Coolsville Mystery Museum? Do you have any way to get in touch with that famous mystery-solving group in your town? My name is Marcie Fleach, and there's a mystery I need them to investigate in Crystal Cove, California."

She gave them her number. "Thank you so much."

"It had to be me to make that call," Marcie explained after she hung up. "Your names are the same as theirs and it would seem like a prank call."

A few minutes later, a call came in on Marcie's phone. "This is Fred Jones. Marcie, do you remember us?"

"Yes!" said Marcie. "And you remember Crystal Cove?"

"All of us do except for Norville and Scoobert. They're back to their old happy-go-lucky selves and they don't remember anything that happened there."

"I'm so happy Norville and Scoobert are all right," said Marcie. "And that they don't remember. I would have trouble looking Norville in the eyes if he did. And Cassidy has her own new life as a multi-billionaire. I doubt she's met any of us."

"Why don't we come back there and talk," said Frederick. "We're on the road in California. We'll be there as soon as we can."

* * *

"We thought you wouldn't remember," said Anne. "Nothing we could see on the web showed any mysteries in Crystal Cove any more."

"We thought it would be better not to disturb you if you had completely new lives," said Dace.

"Everyone remembers those new lives but us," said Fred.

"They aren't really our lives at all," said Daphne.

"We really miss mysteries," said Velma.

"Yeah," said Shaggy. "It's cool this place has lots of fun and food, with no monsters to chase us, but..."

"We miss the excitement," said Scooby-Doo.

"Like, there are still plenty of mysteries out there," said Norville. "We ran into one this morning."

"Speaking of mysteries, we might as well look at this disc from Miskatonic University," said Fred.

Fred put the DVD in the player and a familiar face appeared, one the local gang remembered from the Char Gar Gothakon case.

"Harlan Ellison here. You can call me Mr. E. I know who you kids are and I know that you created an alternate timeline by destroying that Evil Entity. How do I know this? How you ask in your purblind ignorance? It's obvious as antlers on a chihuahua. I'm a genius! All my years of writing speculative fiction has hyper tuned my psychic mnemonic connection with alternate dimensions. That's why I am able to remember ever time-line ever created. And believe me, this has happened before, but you kids have slipped the time stream with me."

The listeners gasped in surprise.

Ellison continued, "Very rare. Very strange. That's why I sent you this message. I've taken up residence as professor of sub-nuclear sciences at Miskatonic University. I want you in my class next semester. I've already got you all admitted, even that weird dog. There's a lot of meddling to do and a lot of mysteries out there that need solving. Don't miss it."

"Hold the phone!" said Fred.

"Jeepers!" said Daphne.

"Jinkies!" said Velma.

"Zoinks!" said Shaggy.

"Miskatonic University!" said Marcie.

"Amazing!" said Scooby-Doo.

"That's a great lead for you, a city where you can have your own new set of cases," said Frederick.

"But it's all the way on the other side of the country," said Daphne. "How are we going to get there?"

"We'll drive, starting right now," said Fred. "And we'll stop and solve every mystery we find along the way."

"Ooh!" said Daphne.

"A mystery solving road trip!" said Velma.

"That's the way we do it," said Frederick. "If you need to pretend to be us, to cash in on our reputation to get cooperation from the authorities, you're welcome to do it."

"Oh, boy, oh, boy, oh, boy!" said Scooby.

"Like, can we also stop and eat at every burger place and pizza joint we find along the way, too?" asked Shaggy.

"Absolutely," said Fred. "But first, we need to do something about this van."

"We'll help you decorate it like ours," said Frederick.

* * *

While they were painting the Mystery Machine with stenciled designs copied from the other one, they continued to talk.

"Professor Ellison said it's happened before," said Dace. "It may have happened to us in our old world. Remember the Evil Entity said the anunnaki had altered our memories."

Velma said, "I know the Evil Entity has been messing with our memories all along. We had many years of mystery cases, all while in high school. We haven't been aging, and we kept repeating our senior year."

"No wonder I had trouble with the concept of time, and understanding what graduation meant," said Fred.

"Fred, I believe that with your high-functioning autism it was harder for the Entity to confuse your memories," said Velma.

"Art-ism? I guess I'm enough of a trap artist that it was harder to trap my mind," said Fred.

"Like, we're free of that trap now, so I wonder if we'll start aging," said Shaggy.

"Probably not. Our gang doesn't age, basically," said Anne. "We look just like we did in high school. It will probably be the same for you."

"Wow," said Scooby.

"One more thing about Miskatonic University," said Velma. "We'll have to get you enrolled too, Marcie. You'll come with us on the road trip, right?"

"Of course, V. And I shouldn't have any trouble getting in," said Marcie. "It looks like my dad can afford college. In this time-line, I persuaded him to close his amusement park, and I sold the super helium I made from the scrap metal. No monsters were involved."

"What about Nova? Can she come, too?" asked Scooby.

"I don't see why not," said Fred. "She's our family dog. My parents told me that you two have been dating for a while."

"Reah reah reah!" said Scooby. "You're not jealous, Scoobert?"

"Rever met Rova," said Scoobert. "Ro roblem."

"One more idea," said Dace. "Velma, would you mind swapping places with me on the trip? I could have some quality time with Shaggy while you have fun solving mysteries with my gang."

"Cool idea, Dace," said Shaggy.

"I think that would work, if Marcie could come along with me," said Velma.

"That would be fine with us," said Frederick.

"Are you all right with that, Marcie?" Velma asked.

"You know I'd be happy anywhere with you, V," said Marcie.

"Then it's settled. We'll each set off on our own mystery trips," said Fred. "We'll keep in touch and meet up at Miskatonic."

Soon the two Mystery Machines were heading out of town, accompanied by unison calls from the two Great Danes: "Scooby Dooby Doo!"

THE END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: It's been a long time since I started this story, back in 2011. I started it before the second season aired. Thanks to all who have followed it and encouraged me to continue!


End file.
